A Sharkmaid's Tale
by virtualboy2558
Summary: Two souls that are destined to meet; one on land and one at sea... and both live in a society that can't understand their breed. Both feel isolated inside... but together, they might find peace with each other. Takes place in the SMRPG world. Rated T for violence, nudity, and mature subject matter.
1. Chapter 1: Abandonment & Initiation

A Sharkmaid's Tale

By: Virtualboy2558

/

Disclaimer: Super Mario RPG is Copyrights of Nintendo, Square, and Shigeru Miyamoto. I do not own, nor profit, from any or all of the characters mentioned.

/

Some say that living on a deserted island that's miles away from civilization could make anyone go a little crazy… perhaps even lonely. In most stories, you'd occasionally hear a gang of kids getting stranded out in the middle of the sea, trying to survive on a supposedly haunted isle. Or a man who finds himself stuck in isolation on a heaven-forsaken rock for a year or two, his only companion being a humble soccer ball painted to have a face.

In these stories, the situations may be different from time to time… but the main character is always the same. They are people who have no one to talk or look up to when times get tough.

But today… explores a new kind of story that presents two people from two different worlds: one on land and one in sea. And both feel alone on the inside… because they are outsiders in a society that can't understand their kind. But together…

…they might find peace with each other.

/

It was a foggy evening on Kumo Reef… but that's because it was foggy every day before dusk. The Reef, as some locals call it, was a small, inhabited land southwest from the mainland of Seaside Town. Kumo Reef was told by many to be the ancestral place where Lakitus live.

For many generations, the native Lakitus that lived on this island had been a peaceful and thriving community. Naturally curious, and born with a high intellect, they build and expand the area to make it one of the most modernized locations in all the Worlds. But on this island, there was one Lakitu that was a prodigy in his own right.

Regarded to be matched with greats like Albert Koopenstein or Bombino Da Vinci, even people outside the Reef have heard of his technological feats. Like the machine that can absorb moisture in the air and turn it into drinkable water. Or the bacteria he created that can eat through rust, dirt and grime in even the most under-washed spots, all without harming other surfaces.

Many would flock to him to ask if he could solve their problems, like bad TV reception, aching body parts from repetitive chores, or even life-threatening scenarios that police and firefighters endure every day. And he would find solutions to them all. And the shocking part is that he was only 13 years old.

His name… is Luke McCloud.

"Luke! Luke, my boy! Come over here!" a voice rang out.

The young Lakitu was currently in his room, tinkering with a little gizmo on his desk, when he heard his father calling for him. He sighed in exasperation.

"I'm coming, Dad! Just give me a minute!" he replied.

Luke wasn't like your average Lakitu. In fact… he wasn't even a true one in terms of genetics. His mother was a pure Lakitu, while his father was human. And this combination leads to what many scientists regard to as a 'hybrid'.

The young teen had many features of a Lakitu, like stringy hair, a short but sturdy head, and a protective shell covering his thin body. However, he was much larger than the typical cloud person, standing up to a height of nearly 5 feet. And by stand… it was actually with his own two legs, since he was too heavy to be lifted up by a standard Lakitu cloud.

For a part human/part Lakitu breed, he wasn't too bad-looking either. He inherited his mom's eyes and his dad's cheekbones. He wasn't athletic, but he had a somewhat sinewy build. His choice for clothes was a white t-shirt and blue jacket, along with gray pants and rubber sneakers.

"Come down here, son! You can work on your contraption later! Right now, it's time for dinner!" This time, it was his mom that answered.

Sigh, Luke thought, while looking at the small carburetor he was working on. I might as well put it aside for now. Lousy combustion chamber…

He dragged himself out of his bedroom and into the kitchen, where his family was waiting for him at the table.

"Finally! I was wondering when you'd turn up!" his dad responded with a smile. "Sometimes I wonder if you even get square meals while being cooped up in your dungeon all day. Look at you… you're all skin and bone!"

"Now, now Lando… don't try to lecture him," a female Lakitu warned him, though she too was just being kind. "He's a smart boy. He knows what time to come for his meals." She looked at her son with her twinkling eyes. "So how is the new model coming along, Luke?"

"Not good. I still keep getting excess overheat, and the lubrication is drying out too quickly. I may have to switch designs again."

"That the fourth time this week!" said another Lakitu that was barely older than Luke. She crossed her arms. "You're going to have to come up with a solid decision sooner or later, bro!"

"Okay, Lea. Since you're so concerned, how about you try to design my engine for me?" Luke retorted.

His sister made a face. "No way! I got enough problems of my own without having to baby-sit you! I have better things to do!"

"Such as?"

Lea tried to come up with an excuse to blow his witty remark out of the water. "Like… uh… like… like finishing my biology essay final for tonight!"

"Yeah right, you liar!" he laughed. "Exams don't even start until two months from now! And since when have you been interested in homework? All you do is go to the mall and hang out with your friends all day, sipping on lattes and shopping for clothes!"

"Why I oughta…"

"Children, that's enough!" their mother scolded at them. She was holding her stirring spoon out in a strict and assertive way. "If you two can't act civilized, then I suggest you eat your food outside! Do I make myself clear?"

"Sigh… yes Mom," Luke and Lea flatly spoke in unison. The Lakitu boy went to sit next to his dad, just across from his sister. She grumbled at him while eating her plate of spaghetti and tofu balls.

"So Luke, I was wondering…," Lando proposed, trying to change the subject. "You've been extra busy for the past couple of weeks or so… and I know that this week you'll be off from school." He scratched his messy brown hair. "So I was thinking that, if it's not too much trouble… you would want to take part in the Annual Fishing Derby on Saturday."

His son groaned. "Dad… I told you a thousand times that I can't go. I'm going to be gone for that week for the Science Fair."

Actually, that wasn't quite the reason. For the 8th year in a row, Lando had been trying to get him and Luke to bond by introducing his son to his fishing hobby. And every time, he flat out refused to go. It wasn't because the young Lakitu was too busy to spend some free time with his father. It was because he had no interest in that boring, brutal sport. He thought the idea of spearing a couple of helpless worms, and drowning them in the sea to be eaten alive by ravaging aquatic life, was a cruel and barbaric way to spend one's afternoon.

"I don't mean that you have to actually fish, Luke," his dad explained. "I just want you to at least accompany by my side. Just for a bit of quality time. You always allow your mother to visit you in your room when you're working, but you don't for me. Isn't that right, Lumiya?"

"Yes, that's true," the female Lakitu parent agreed. She gave her son a concerning look. "I don't see why you can't make room for your father, my dear."

"I know, Mom… but I _really_ want to get the Nimbus Mark 9 running before the weekend starts."

"It's only for one day, Luke," Lumiya pointed out. "It won't hurt you to try make an effort to be with your family once in a while. Name one time you and your father did something together."

"Uh…" The Lakitu boy thought hard and searched through his memories… and he came up with no answer to her statement. He even tried brief instances of where he and his dad were alone together… and again, he had nothing.

"Please, son…," Lando sighed. "Just this once, I want to do this. Just so I can get to know you."

Realizing he had no other choice or compromise, Luke lowered his head in defeat. "Fine… I'll go," he muttered. He felt one of his hands getting nuzzled by his pet Spiny, Han. The spiky creature was sitting down and looking up to him with cute eyes, begging for food.

Luke breathed deeply and got out of his seat. "I'm going to take a constitutional down the beach for a while."

"Pardon?" his dad asked.

"I'm going for a walk," he responded. "I'll see you later."

"But what for? You haven't even eat your supper, dear!" Lumiya told him.

"I'll eat it when I get back. I got a headache forming right now, and I'm not hungry anyways. I won't be gone for too long. Goodbye." He walked to the front door, exited through it and closing it on his way out. Han followed the Lakitu teen through the doggy flap and chased after him. Both parents eyed each other with worry.

"What could have gone wrong with Luke, honey?" the Lakitu mother asked. "Why doesn't he like you?"

Lando shrugged. "I don't know, Lumiya. I wish I knew…"

/

Deep down at the bed of the ocean, where many dread to swim, was a pirate ship that laid in between Kumo Reef and Seaside Town. The sides of the boat were speckled with plankton and starfish. The cannons were eerie and deadly-looking to warn off trespassers. And the skull flag was still grinning vividly, despite it appearing tattered and neglected for cleaning. For many years, it was the home to one fearful outlaw, Jonathan "Johnny" Jones.

Johnny, as he was known by his crew, was a black-hearted and swashbuckling shark that loved the thrill of hijacking and stealing the cargo of stranded ships, just like any pirate captain would. His loyal men, who were also a gang of sharks, would do whatever they could to please their master, no matter what he said. Respected by almost everyone, he was the most notorious pirate ever to roam the seas.

But there was one secret that Johnny never told to anyone. At one point in his life… he once fell in love. It was during one peaceful night some 20 odd years ago, while he was taking a leisurely swim near his ship, that he heard her…

It was a voice of angelic beauty, like that of sirens but more subtle. Her tone was tranquil and carefree. And it made the posture of the stiff, robust shark loosen to a tender and vulnerable state. Johnny didn't wanted to show signs of weakness, but his desire to find the source to her song was too much.

After following the music for what seemed like eternity, he found her. She was the most beautiful woman he ever laid sights on. Her coral-pink hair was shimmering and lengthy, gently caressing her light, flawless skin. Her sublime green eyes sucked him in like a whirlpool. And her most interesting feature was the fact that instead of legs… was a smooth, elegant blue fish tail that hugged her by the waist.

His presence scared her a bit when she saw him. After all, no one is used to seeing a mug so grisly and jagged like Johnny's. But the shark tried his best to not look intimidating, which was why she didn't scuttled off in terror.

"Hello, madam," he spoke calmly. His ruthless heart was filled instead with anxiety and longing. "I… I heard your tantalizing melody while I was skimming the surface. Tis' a relaxing moonlight this evening for song, would you agree?"

She giggled and nodded. It appeared that she might either be mute or unable to speak above water. But that didn't mattered… since she knew that this shark was friendly and meant no harm.

"I could stay here and listen to you… if that's okay with you. I have nothing better to do anyways," Johnny stated. "Would it bother you if I stay for a while?" Again, a soft laugh and she shook her head, telling him that she didn't mind.

And so, for the whole night, he watched her sing her awe-inspiring solo. It was the kind of music that any man could get pulled in and feel inner peace with himself. And by the time dawn was beginning to break, she was all tired and unable to carry a tune. She was about to swim off when Johnny panicked.

"Wait! Don't leave just yet!" he croaked. He didn't wanted her to go… but he knew that she had to return to her kind, whether he liked it or not. But he still wanted to express his gratitude. "I… I just wanted to say… thank you for allowing me to stay… and…" His heart quivered by looking at her lovely form. "…I think you have the most wonderful voice in all of the Mushroom World."

He was scared what she might think of him now, while he waiting for her response. But she simply smiled and swam back to meet him. They were now only a few inches from each other. The shark pirate's body was covered with chills when she held on top his shoulders. Her face got closer and closer to his until… their lips touched for an intimate kiss.

All at once, Johnny's worries had left him like a school of fish. He felt like he was hovering over the water while she embraced him. But as quickly as it came, the wondrous female released him from their moment of passion. His heartbeat was back to normal, but felt heavy in his chest… now that he had her in his memories.

"Will I ever see you again?" he asked.

Once more, she smiled and leaned into where his ear would be. She only whispered one word.

"Yes…"

She submerged herself into the water and flapped her tailfin, heading towards the morning sun. And before Johnny knew it, she was gone.

But it wasn't the last he saw her. During his travels, the old shark would ponder on his boat every night, waiting for her arrival. And almost every time, she would come back to him. They would sometimes talk about what they did while the other was away, even sharing a few moments of affection while Johnny's crew was asleep. And all the while, their relationship grew bit by bit every time they got together.

But on one certain night, Johnny wanted to do something special for his companion… They were sitting on the edge of his ship, chatting like usual and holding each other's hand. Then the shark asked her a question.

"My dear… we have known each other for quite a long while, have we?"

The mermaid gave a small flutter from her tail while looking at him. "Yes, indeed. It feels like I have known you my whole life. Why do you say such a thing, John?"

"Because… because I was wondering…," he stuttered. "If you would tell me… how you feel when you're around me."

"Hahaha… is that all?" she laughed. "My dear… I can tell you that I always look forward to our meetings. And I'm sure you feel the same way about me."

He joined in her laughter with a light chuckle. "Yes, I do. And… I want to express my feelings in a manner I hope it might please you." He dug into the hem of his cape. "I know it's not much that I can give… but it was carved out of the goodness of my soul." He clasped onto what he was searching for. "I want you to have this…"

In his hand, he pulled out a necklace. It was made out of many small and delicate shells, was strung together with dried seaweed and, dangling at the bottom, was a sand dollar about the size of a quarter.

She eyed it in awe for a minute. "For me?"

He nodded. "I just finished making it last night. Do you like it?"

"Oh yes, John! I love it! Thank you!" Pulling back her hair, she let him carefully put it over her head and around her neck. Happy tears were in her green eyes while she examined its every detail. "Oh, my dear… I want to be with you for all time. My heart is yours." And they both swooped in for a loving smooch.

But at that moment, a vibration rumbled within the water. It sounded like faint drumming to anyone with normal ears. But it was enough to make the mermaid's eyes snap back open to reality. A look of shock crossed her face.

Johnny could sense her tension. "What's wrong?" he asked.

"I have to go!" she shouted in panic. And she hopped back into the sea. But before she swam to the depths, her love halted her for a quick second.

"Just promise me one thing…," the shark told her firmly. "That you'll stay safe for me."

"I promise…" And with that said, she dived into the ocean.

But little did Johnny knew, it would be weeks and weeks before he got a response from her. The poor pirate captain worried about her during the day and searched all over his boat at night. She didn't appear to him, nor did he heard her voice again. It was as though the mermaid was cut off to his end.

Every day since her ominous disappearance, his crew felt concerned for him. Johnny did not bark at them to leave him alone, or give orders to keep them occupied… he simply gazed out to sea, his face all heartbroken. Not knowing what was the cause of his sadness or how to cheer up their captain, his gang simply decided to let him muse in his thoughts.

It was another dank evening, and still no sign of his companion. Thunder rolled over as dark storm clouds filled the sky, and he let out a grunt. He didn't care if he got a little soaked in the rain. It felt like nothing compared to how hollow and empty he felt inside. Without her… he was just a shark without a dorsal fin.

A sudden thumping sound had brought his attention on high alert. Johnny looked to his left and to his right, by didn't see anything out of the ordinary. That was… until he looked down in the waters. A silent gasp escaped his mouth.

Bumping on the side of his ship was a small basket woven in seaweed. It was partially covered in some sort of blanket, but inside it… he saw an infant child sleeping in the contents.

The shark scrambled down to the bottom of his ship and dove into the sea. He swam to reach for the basket containing the abandoned baby, securing his grip on it with his sharp teeth. After getting back on his vessel, he carefully pulled out the infant and held it close to his chest to keep it warm. What sick guardian would be cruel enough to leave their newborn out to die in the unforgiving ocean?

His first thoughts were that he'd gut out the vile creature that done this to the poor youth. But a sharp pain arose from his forearm and he flinched, almost dropping the infant in the water again.

"What the…?!" he sputtered. He checked his arm to find small but deep bite marks. "How in Davy Jones locker did this… Oh… my." He was drawn to the bundle he was carrying.

With a stir, the baby woke up and looked up at the surprised pirate. Her face had the same blue complexion that he did, with a generous lock of blue hair on her head. Her mouth gaped open to reveal a set of tiny, pointy teeth. But her eyes… her eyes were the exact same green as his beloved. In every way, she was the most beautiful baby shark girl he ever saw.

Beside her, Johnny saw something that also got his interest: a rolled-up letter. It was a bit soggy from its trip, but the words were still legible. More thunder clapped the air as a shower of rain was starting to drizzle on the two. While still carrying the child, he unravelled the paper and started reading what it said:

"_Dearest Jonathan… I'm sorry to tell you this… but I must leave you for now. I cannot say why, nor can I tell you when I'll return. It hurts me to say goodbye to you like this, but please understand… I still love you with all my heart. I wanted to tell you something the last time we met, but I didn't get the chance to. And as you can see, this is our daughter… and I want you to take full care of her. Make her live healthy and strong, and promise me that you'll keep her out of danger, like my promise I've kept to you. _

_I enclosed her name at the bottom of this letter. It is the same name that was your mother's, because I thought she was the sweetest thing I've ever laid eyes on. _

_And I just wanted you to know… you both mean the world to me. I will come back someday. Love you two…"_

That was all the note had to offer… except for the name that was scrawled down below. Johnny squinted at the word, because the heavy downpour had almost washed it all out. He rolled up the letter and pocketed it. He was now looking with determination upon the baby girl in his arms. She eyed him with curiosity.

"I welcome you to the family, little one," he whispered. "And I promise you… no harm shall befall on you, even if I have to sacrifice myself. I'll take you under my fin and raise you as my own. I may not have the love your mother has… but I will still give you care in any way possible. Daughter of mine… I'll make you to be my natural-born fighter. You are my one… my only… you are… my Jolene…"

/

20 years had past since that fateful day. And ever since then, Johnny kept his child under his roof. Jolene learned pretty quickly in her early age, already knowing how to swim in about 3 days and spoke her first words in 2 weeks. The young shark girl even trained every day to be more like her father. At the age of 5, she was able to take hold of the cargo from many stranded sailors… and by 8, she became more skilled than anyone in Johnny's crew.

But no matter how much she tried to impress him, Johnny wouldn't let his daughter join his way of life. She still acted persistent, though. Jolene would even put herself at risk many times just to prove her strength and cunning. But that only made her father more angry rather than proud. She couldn't figure out why he wouldn't let her be part of his crew. It was a question that she asked herself for a long time.

The now adult female shark was resting in her room in solitude. She grew up a lot since she was found in her basket, measuring a healthy 8 feet and 2 inches from head to tailfin. All the thieving and exercise she did also left her lean and pretty fit. And yet… she still looked as beautiful as her mother.

A knock came from Jolene's door, and she opened a bleary, vivid green eye. She grumbled. "Who is it? I'm really not in the mood to talk right now."

There was a shuffling sound, followed by another knock. The shark girl was losing her patience.

"I swear… if it's you guys again, I'm going to gouge your snouts out!" she growled. She got up from her bed, swam to the door and yanked it open. "How many times I told you never to disturb me while I'm… sleeping…" She looked down to find a single, small and timid Bandana Blue with thick glasses. The poor thing was shivering under her wrath a second ago.

"Oh! I'm so sorry, Rusty!" Jolene apologized, covering her mouth with her hands. "I thought you were Avery and his jerk friends again…"

"T-That's okay," the puny shark replied nasally. "It was an honest mistake." He nervously petted his fins together like they might fall off.

"So what is that you came to see me for?" she asked.

Rusty gulped. "Umm… J-J-Johnny wants to s-see you in his o-office."

Jolene made a face. "Ugh… I could guess what he has to say can't be good news, is it?"

"I'm afraid not, madam."

"Sigh… well… We might as well get a move on then," she flatly spoke, before moving out of her bedroom. "And please, Rusty… don't call me madam. I feel old when you say that."

"Sorry, madam… uh, I mean… miss," he stuttered.

"And not miss either. Just call me Jolene."

"Yes, Jolene."

The two sharks swished through the hallways, the water feeling a little chilly. They passed through the recreational room, where Johnny's mates were playing pool, working out with heavy weights, or just discussing among themselves about how many land folk they pillaged. Some of them looked up from their activities to gawk and sneer at the shark girl.

"Well, well, well… if it isn't Jolene! What mess did you get yourself into now?! Hahahaha!"

"Did you make daddy-waddy angry again? Naughty naughty!"

"Perhaps next time you should try playing dead! Maybe that will get Johnny to recruit you!"

She ignored their mocking comments about her, even though her fists were clenched with rage. If there was one thing she knew… it's never to blindly start up a fight.

She and Rusty had left the gang of pirates, their roars of laughter still ringing in their ears. They were now outside the door to Johnny's office. Rusty tugged at the collar of his shirt.

"I can't go any further… he wants to only see you," he gulped.

"That's okay, you can leave me now. Thanks for escorting me, Rust," she told him.

"You're welcome… Good luck, J-Jolene…"

The small shark scuttled off. She took a deep breath and exhaled while putting her hand on the doorknob. This isn't going to go well, she thought. Might as well get it over with… She twisted the knob and came into the pirate captain's headquarters.

The room was decorated with lots of memorabilia and awards of honour. To the left, there was an aging map that shown the entirety of Square Island. A tank full of lobster and minnows was placed on the right wall. A large fancy desk occupied the middle of the room. And right behind it, with his back turned to her… stood Johnny himself.

"Close the door and sit down," he simply muttered. His tone was clear and otherwise not happy as he normally was. But then again… he never shown any sign of joy around her.

Jolene did as she was told and sat on the wooden chair placed before her. She waited for her father's response, not saying a thing.

It was a while before he opened his jagged mouth again. "Care to explain what happened yesterday?" He turned his head to her without moving from his position. She still said nothing. "Giving me the cold shoulder now, eh? I could go and humour you by doing the same… but be this not the best time, I'm not going to bother. Would you mind telling me how dangerous the stunt you've pulled?"

He turned his full body around to face his daughter. For the third time, she kept her lips sealed.

"Answer me now!" Johnny suddenly bellowed, irritated of her incompetent silence.

She slowly looked at his terrifying gaze. "It wasn't dangerous in the first place, _dad_…," she said finally.

"Oh really? Do you have any idea just how close you were to getting caught by those fishing nets?" he retorted. He was trying to restrain his anger, but with little success. "That's all it takes just to land you in the nearest butcher shop! Just one net, and you're gone! Never to be seen again!"

"I could tell them otherwise. I'm not stupid, you know."

"It does not matter what be your intelligence is, Jolene. Those landlubbers will try to sell you for a quick buck, be it for a freak show or for meat produce. They do not care of how smart a creature is, so long as they get their fair share."

"Well what about you?" she defiantly talked back. "How come the humans don't prod you or treat you like the barbaric mammal you are?"

Johnny slammed his hands on his desk and spat at her. "How dare you speak like that to your father! I've made myself be respectfully known through acts of intimidation and diligence in my work! But for you… you recklessly put yourself in where many fish folk would consider suicide! Not once do you think before acting, nor wonder the consequences upon you or for your fellow shark!"

Jolene got up from her seat to confront him. "All I want to do is be in your darn crew, dad! But no! You never give me the chance to prove my worthiness! All that time to show you what I can do apparently means nothing to you!"

"That's because you're too young and naïve!" he roared.

"Oh, don't pull that one on me! I'm not a little kid anymore!" she argued. Tears were leaking from her eyes. "I'm a grown woman! Face the facts! If I didn't think I was ready, I wouldn't be trying so hard to make you think I'd be willing to kill myself!"

"My decision is still no, Jolene." Johnny was still fuming, but he was keeping his voice to a more calmer and firmer tone.

"Then tell me why! Why won't you let me join?!"

"I'll tell you when _I_ feel you are ready. When you are able to understand. End of story," he concluded. He once again turned his back on her.

"Gaaahhhh! No, you won't! You'll never let me be ready!" she screamed. "You'll only hold me back until I'm too old to be any use to you!" She angrily thrashed her tail and headed for the door. "I hate you so much!" With a heaving sob, she exited the room with a slam.

Her final words made the pirate captain sigh with guilt. There was silence for a moment, before Johnny sighed again and sat slumped in his desk chair. He rested a hand to his forehead.

"Why is this so tough, my love?" he asked to no one physically in particular.

He knew that his wife would have tried reasoning with their child in a heartbeat. But without her, it was like trying to pry out his own teeth. And he did promise her, that he would keep their daughter safe…

But for what purpose?

Jolene cried all the way while getting outside. She didn't care who she met, and didn't bother to cover her tears… All she wanted was to be left alone. But deep down, she knew that wasn't what she wanted.

For once in her life, she wished she could be near someone who feels the same way as she did. Someone who didn't reject her for being different. Someone who would listen to her pain. Someone… who is just like her. An outcast.

"Nyhahaha… what ya boo-hooing about now, Jolie?"

The shark girl lifted her head to see the one group of people she despised the most in all the ocean. She cringed her face in disgust. "Go away, Avery. Haven't you got better things to do?"

The Bandana Red grinned wickedly. "Oh, don't be a sourpuss… me and the boys were only strolling around near Johnny's office when we just happen to hear about your… ah… '_predicament_'." His buddies chortled, thinking he made a hilarious joke.

"Oh really? Well, why don't you take your 'boys' elsewhere?" she threatened. "I don't need your sympathy."

"Awww… come on, Jolie," Avery said in a mock-baby voice. "We only want to help. Isn't that right, boys?" They roared in agreement.

"Forget it, Avery," the shark girl growled at him. "Whatever it is that you're offering me, I'm not buying it. So scram before I make mince meat out of all of you."

"Ahh… But don't ya wanna have Johnny let ya into our elite force?" he drawled. "We'll even tell ya how to do it. All ya need is to pass an initiation test…"

She was now find their presence annoying. "Screw your initiation test, and screw your so-called elite force," Jolene said through gritted teeth. "I mean it. If you don't clear out within the next five seconds…"

"No, we're serious!" Avery avowed, holding his fins up to calm her down. "We'll even show ya proof! Bring me the photo, Jack!"

"Who, me?" spoke the Bandana Red in question.

"Yes, you! Hand it over!"

Jack looked clueless before digging into his shirt, and his face lit up when he found something there. He tossed a white square card to Avery and his leader caught it. He then stuffed it under Jolene's nose.

"Ya see this? This was taken when Johnny got into the business… when _his_ dad made him do initiation. It's all there in black and white!"

Unable to help but feel curious, she swiped the photo from Avery's grip and took a look. In said photo, she could make out the details of her father apparently… 'massacring' a poor and innocent human in the water. Her mouth gaped open in surprise to see him like this. She never heard him go out and having to hunt down a creature in cold blood.

"See? I wasn't lyin', was I?" Avery pointed out. He patted her shoulder like she was a long-known friend. "And all ya need to do is head out, look for some poor sap… and go in for the kill."

"I don't believe you," she denied, thrusting the photo back to him. "My dad wouldn't even do such a thing."

"Well, of course not! Not in his age anymore!" he piped up, like he was stating something obvious. "But you… you're at just the right age to do this! Ya just gotta find a person to bite, draw blood, and be done with it! That's all ya need to do! Unless… you're too yellow to do it."

"Yeah! Yellow-belly! Yellow-belly! Yellow-belly!" his gang chanted.

Jolene really didn't want to do this horrible task. It went far beyond anything that her instincts would allow for. But still… the need to show her father that she was not weak was growing inside her. She couldn't keep it out of her head, thinking that this could be her only chance to be one with the team.

And she even reasoned herself that if she did this, she'd promise to get her soon-to-be victim to the nearest hospital.

"Alright…," she uttered. "I'll do it…"

"Excellent!" Avery cheered in glee. "We'll just take ya to where ya need to be! Ya do the rest, and we'll snap a shot of ya to bring to Johnny! You'll officially become one of us! It's foolproof!"

He dashed up to head for the surface, and his buddies joined with him. The Bandana Red hollered out.

"Well? What are ya waiting for? Mating season? Come on!"

Jolene watched as they swam to the top, and she took a deep breath. She was still doubting if she could do it. And if she did… what would that make her? Some kind of monster?

Her green eyes squinted determinately. No… she would not let that happen. If she were to do the vile act of bloodshed, she won't let herself be consumed by the temptation to do it again. And she will not let it get the better of her.

With that thought, she looked up to the water above her and began propelling upwards to her destiny.

/

There were a lot of tourist attractions in Kumo Reef. One was its museum of historical heritage. Another was the old boardwalk just east of the island. But amongst the most attractive spots were its share of beaches. And in one of those beaches, Luke was treading on its sandy terrains.

The Lakitu boy was mulling things over in his head, while Han was sniffing the ground in search for something to satisfy his hunger. He wasn't in the best mood to find inner peace with himself. He kept thinking of why his family (excluding Lea) was trying to force him to do things he didn't want to do.

First was when he was 5, when his mother took Luke to band class… while he clearly stated he wanted to take part in chemistry instead. Then was the time when she made him get a part-time job at the local electronics shop, but he didn't wanted it because it wasn't fulfilling nor paid a decent wage. And his more recent embarrassment was when his dad made him listen to all of his days while out to sea.

And now… both he and Luke's mother were forcing their son to participate in a fishing contest that would most likely be a wasted day of productivity for his inventions. The Lakitu boy sighed with grief and looked down at his pet.

"Oh, Han… I really don't want to go to that stupid derby tomorrow…," he moaned. "But I also don't want to disappoint Dad. As much as I hate to agree, Mom is right… I don't even spend time with him anymore."

The Spiny murmured in interest, forgetting its hunt for nourishment for a moment. Luke scratched his pet's head and went to lay down in the sand.

"I know that he means well and all… but I just wished that Dad suggested other ways we could have fun together. I mean… there's got to be more to his life than fishing on a boat, right?"

Han gave a clueless shrug. He chose to nuzzle his master by his leg.

"Well… whatever he's into, I got to think of something we could do… and fast," Luke admitted, scanning the smoggy horizon. "Or like those tidal waves, I'm only going to drift further from him…"

About a hundred yards away, a brew of bubbles formed in the water before Avery and his gang broke the surface. Not long after, Jolene had joined with them, and the group of sharks were now staring out to the beach ahead. The leader of the pack flashed a grin.

"Ah ha! Just your luck, Jolie!" Avery marvelled. "I can already see a helpless human out there all by itself! That makes it perfect for a quick and discreet attack!"

"Stop saying that, you hammerhead," she hissed. "I'm not here to listen to you rambling about your bloodlust."

He snickered while crossing his arms. "Now don't tell me ya gone soft already! When it comes to being a pirate, us sharks are always ready to conquer! We're all born to enjoy the sense of violence! Always have, always will be!"

"Yeah!" went his buddies in unison.

Jolene shook her head in revulsion. "Well, keep your 'sense of violence' to a minimum then. I'm the one that's supposed to do this, remember?"

"Why, certainly!" the Bandana Red nodded. "Just do your part and make it realistic! Ya got that camera now, right Jack?"

"Uh… yes, sir," he said. The small shark was holding out an old Polaroid in his fins.

"Good! We don't want any slip-ups now, would we?" Avery turned his attention back to the shark girl, and gave her a slap on the back. "Alright, it's now your show… make daddy proud! Hahaha!" Her response was a hard thwack upside his snout from her tail. He clutched his nose in annoyance. "Ow! Watch where ya flinging that thing!"

The group watched her progress as she swam closer to shore. She laid flat on the surface to conceal herself. Staying stealthy was one of her specialties, and an important tool for plundering boats without detection. The less the prey knows of its own danger, the better the advantage.

How she figured she would do this was pretend to be a swimmer struggling to stay afloat, causing her victim to try to go out and save her. And when they're deep enough within the water… she would make her move.

Back to the unknowing subject at hand, Luke felt like he sat around long enough to assess his situation and got up. Han yawned after moving away to give the Lakitu his space.

"There's no point of staying here any longer, boy," he mumbled, petting his friend on the shell. "I'll have to deal with Dad in the morning. Perhaps I can try to compromise him with something…" He was about to head back home, when he heard a cry ring out to his ears. The Lakitu boy quickly twisted his head. "Huh?"

He squinted in the distance and saw something that made his heart stop. Within the ocean, flapping her arms, he could see a girl was splashing about… just on the verge of drowning.

"Help! Help me!" he heard her cry. Once or twice, the swimmer was submerged into the depths before exhaustedly coming back up for air.

Now in normal circumstances, Luke wasn't known for his skills in moving in the water. Being the puny, non-athletic one in the family, he would rather do things that required as little physical strain as possible. But being that this isn't a normal circumstance, plus the fact that this person is in mortal danger, there was no time to go and call for a lifeguard. Which was surprising since there wasn't any out on duty today.

Han stood idle as he watched the Lakitu rush towards the water. The temperature was bone-chilling cold to his skin, but he never bothered to complain… not while a life was at stake. Luke doggy paddled to the girl as fast as her could. It seemed she wasn't getting any closer to him, but he didn't gave up. With all effort, he pushed himself forward at significant speed.

Luke suddenly got goose bumps when he saw the swimmer dive down and she didn't came back up. He panicked, wondering if he was too late…

Then a powerful force had pushed the Lakitu boy backward, so much so that he was tossed in the air for a brief moment, before splashing back into the water. The sudden impact had stunned him, and he was in a short daze… but he was at least not injured. But that was only the beginning, as something big whacked him to the side. He launched upwards again and landed some 15 feet away. With all this thrashing about, Han whimpered while he sat horrified at the event unfolding before him.

"That's the way! Tucker him out!" hollered Avery, raising his fins out with joy. "Make him too exhausted to escape!"

"Smash his skull! I want to see it fly off!" yelled a random Bandana Red.

"Break one of his ribs! I want to keep it as a souvenir!"

At the moment, Luke was laying in between the transition of shallow water and sand, with some pretty nasty bruises all over his body. He was too numb to feel any pain, and he could see Starmen spinning in and out of his vision. Out of his half-consciousness, he could feel something or someone climbing on top of his chest… and bright green eyes staring down upon him.

The Lakitu boy felt utter terror strike at his heart as he gazed wide-eyed at the wondrous being. It was the girl that he tried to save, but he quickly learned that this was no ordinary creature. Her pale, aquatic blue skin glimmered in the dim light, feeling very coarse to his touch. Her long fishtail wrapped around him like a python, so it would prevent his escape even further. And her pupils were jagged thin slits, making her eyes look malicious yet beautiful.

This is it, Jolene thought, as she sat on the scared individual. I came this far… There's no turning back…

She opened her jaw to reveal a set of razor-sharp teeth. She could see her victim squirming to get away, but could not free himself. Seeing no way out of this, Luke looked away with clenched eyes and sniffled with tears. He was never going to see his family again. And even worse… they won't even know what had happened to him.

She was now close to grazing his skinny neck with her fangs. Her thoughts were running wild. Come on, just do it already! Don't hesitate! Do it now! DO IT! _NOW!_ The voices were shrieking chaotically within her mind.

And yet… she was still hovering over him. No mangling or anything. No spilled blood. No corpse below her towering frame.

Jolene didn't know what was holding her back, but deep down… she found that this was all wrong. It didn't bring her satisfaction to see this living creature shivering at the sight of her. Far from it. It was actually bringing her deep shame and loathing of herself. And she couldn't bear it anymore.

"What am I doing?!" she cried.

The shark girl had let go of her hostage and collapsed in the water, trembling violently before sobbing her eyes out. In the distance, she could hear Avery and the others cackling as they went back under the surface. It was all a trick, she realized. All a sick and cruel trick… and she fell for it. She had almost taken the life of an innocent human, all for nothing. She felt so stupid to not see this coming, but she also felt dirty for even thinking about committing this terrible sin.

She was no shark. She was a disgrace to everyone, including her father…

That thought made Jolene weep harder. And all this time, Luke watched her glum form with pity. The Lakitu wasn't afraid anymore… well, actually… he was still a tad apprehensive. But he couldn't help but feel sympathy for her, despite her trying to kill him a minute ago. Very slowly, he crawled nearer to the mammoth girl before him and delicately pawed her back.

She flinched from his unexpected touch, looked at him fearful and inched away from him. But that only made Luke get close again and continued to stroke her skin. She wanted very much to bite him, but her ugly thoughts of self-belittlement were still rolling in her head. So Jolene relented and let him touch her. But a question arose while she stared at him.

"Aren't you scared of me?" she said with puzzlement.

Luke looked up to her and shook his head a bit. "Not really… just mildly startled. Could you tell me why you're crying?"

Jolene sniffed and wiped her tears away. "You wouldn't understand, human boy…"

"I could try," he reasoned. "I just don't want to see you so sad."

Again, she stared at him with awe, totally shocked of how calm he was. After what seemed like forever, she let out a sigh. What the heck, she mused. After all that she went through today, she needed someone to comfort her. And it's not like her father would do anything about her woes anytime soon.

"I'm sad because… I feel like a failure," she answered.

"How come?"

Jolene gave him a little smirk. "You're really brave, you know that? Other people would have ran away from me in heartbeat instead of chatting with me, like you are right now," she remarked. She brought herself to a somewhat awkward sitting position. "Alright, I'll tell you… It's because my father hates me for who I am."

"Because you hunt down people like me all the time?" Luke wondered.

"No… I'm usually respectful for land folks, believe it or not. It's just…" A look of contempt flashed in her eyes. "…some mean people I know had thought it would be funny to dare me to rip apart some poor person. And they made me think that that would get me into father's crew."

"Wow… they must have some pretty dark, twisted humour then."

She chuckled bitterly. "Yeah, they must have…"

"So… why would you join them in the first place?" he asked. "If they would only be mean to you? Not to be rude or anything… but I find it silly seeing people join clubs where they would be treated badly."

That really got Jolene thinking. "Yeah, good point…," she admitted. "I guess I wanted to do it so that I could make my father proud."

"Sigh… try telling that to my parents."

"Ah… so you got problems with the family as well?" the shark girl questioned, figuring this would be her turn to listen now.

"Yeah, my dad and I aren't on good terms either. Though it's because I don't bond enough with him," Luke explained. "I mean… and I hope you don't take this the wrong way…," he added with a blush. "…but his hobbies include catching a bunch of helpless fish and telling long, drawn-out sailor stories. And the problem is… I don't find his interests very appealing in any shape or form."

She nodded in understanding. "I see. Did you try talking to him about this?"

The Lakitu boy scratched his head. "Well… not exactly. But it's only because I don't want to hurt his feelings. Don't get me wrong, I love my dad… but I wish I could straighten things out so we both could enjoy something we have in common."

"That would be the right thing to do." She looked down to the water in sadness, seeing two fish side by side like they were parent and child. "If only my father would do that with me once in a while… but he's always seems to be wrapped up in his career. And I feel he loves his living more than he loves me…"

Luke felt a pang of sorrow for her and touched her shoulder. "I'm sure he loves you deep down… it could be that he's afraid to show it, but he still loves you."

Jolene, for the third time in a row, looked at him with such amazement. "Why are you so nice to me, human boy?"

He laughed. "I'm not human, lady. I'm a Lakitu… er, well… actually I do have human DNA. It's kind of hard to explain," he addressed while blushing again. "And I do have a name, you know." He held out a welcoming hand to her. "My name's Luke... Luke McCloud. What's yours?"

The shark girl was hesitant to take his greeting, or give out her title to a stranger. But out of the people she had known her whole life… this one was the only person who doesn't see her as a freak. Nor treat her like a bucket of moss. Nor dismiss their conversation because it was too much to bear.

He was truly a person who sees her as an equal…

She slowly smiled and took his hand to shake it. "I'm Jolene. Jolene Jones."

They both examined each others palms in curiosity. Luke could see that hers greatly outgrew his by a long shot. His only covered more than half her length, from bottom to the tips of his fingers, and barely a third of her width.

"Hahaha. Man… I'm really tiny to you, aren't I?"

"Looks like it, Luke," she chuckled with a wink.

What came next was the unexpected sound of cannon fire. Startling them both, they looked out to the ocean. From a distance of the setting red sun, an old wooden ship was heading for their direction. And with great fury, a thunderous voice was shouting out.

"Jolene! Where are you?! You got a lot of explaining to do!"

The shark girl gasped as she recognized the voice. Her whole body quivered with fear.

"No… no… it's… it's my father!"

Luke gaped at her with wide eyes. "Your dad is Jonathan Jones? As in _the_ Jonathan Jones? The most bloodthirsty pirate that ever sailed the Eight Worlds? Gah!" He was grabbed in her sudden grip. Her face was full of panic.

"Luke! You gotta take me with you! Take me as far away from here as you possibly can!"

"But… but how?! You got more than three feet on me, and I'm skinny as a twig! I can't be able to carry you! It's totally impossible!"

"Please, Luke… help me," Jolene begged. Her green eyes were close to tears. "Please…"

Despite his brain screaming that his small body would be unable to lift her heavy frame, and it would be going against all the ramifications of physics… his heart couldn't bear to leave her in this mess all alone.

"O-Okay… I'll… I'll try…"

With uneasy feet, he crouched down so that she could clutch onto his shoulders. The Lakitu gave one or two deep breaths before he moved forward to drag the shark girl with him. But no matter how hard he tried, her weight was too much to budge, and it only resulted in his shoes burying deep into the soft sand.

"Come on, keep going!" she rushed him.

"I… I can't! Your mass and surface area is causing too much friction!"

"Keep trying! I'll even help you!"

Lifting her tail, Jolene used it to dig into the ground and push them out like a shovel. It wasn't much, but they progressed 3 feet closer to the land ahead. She kept doing it over and over to assist Luke, and they were slowly but surely moving farther away from the water.

"Jolene! If you do not come here this instant, I'll be making you walk the plank and be fed to King Calamari on a hunger strike!" Johnny stormed.

"Sigh… sigh… how close is he?!" the Lakitu boy worried, while still pulling his passenger to safety. "Ohh… I don't wanna die!"

"Don't worry, Luke. I won't let him touch you," she assured him. Her eyes glared at the pirate ship. "He'd have to get through me first…"

They both had finally got out of the sand and into the grass of the lush jungle-like forest surrounding them. The pair never looked behind their backs again, all the while the air being filled with cannons bombing the sea, as the shark pirate called out for his daughter.

It may seem like she was leaving her old life behind, but a new adventure was about to unfold for her…

/

(End of Part 1)


	2. Chapter 2: The Humble Abode

A Sharkmaid's Tale

By: Virtualboy2558

/

Disclaimer: Super Mario RPG is Copyrights of Nintendo, Square, and Shigeru Miyamoto. I do not own, nor profit, from any or all of the characters mentioned.

/

Johnny had never been so mad at his crew before. Sure, he had given them past lectures when someone had stolen his trident. Or had gotten too rowdy from a late-night party and befouled his ship with spray paint and seaweed ale. Or that one time when one of his mates thought it would be hilarious to scribble his face with permanent marker when he was sleeping.

But never had the shark pirate unleashed utter rage like he was doing now. And not because his treasure was swiped either.

"Owowowow! Okay, okay! I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Avery whined.

Again, his snout was slapped hard by his captain's fin. Johnny had been punishing the Bandana Red and his buddies for the last 10 minutes, all because of their latest prank.

"Don't be calling me sorry!" Johnny bellowed. "If it be up to me, I'd skin the lot of you and dip your carcasses in hot oil! You all make me so sick, I wouldn't even spit in your direction!"

Jack stuttered like he was in cold water right now. "B-B-But we were o-only d-doing you a f-favour, boss! GAAAHHH!" His nostrils were grabbed violently upwards in his captain's steel grip.

"A favour?! A FAVOUR?!" the shark growled in a dangerous voice. His yellow eyes were squinting at his mate, who shivered from just the mere venom that he was giving him. "I dare you to say those words in my face again. Lest you be wanting your skull rearranged. And it won't be pretty…"

Not another word had escaped from Jack's throat, because he was too busy wetting his pants. Johnny cringed his nose from the foul stench and dropped him with disgust. He turned his attention back to Avery.

"Now… give me one good reason why I shouldn't boil you alive, you wretched demon."

"B-Because I've b-been s-serving you s-s-so well for t-the last 10 y-years? Urk!"

"Wrong answer, cadet!" He clutched onto the Bandana Red's throat and lift him in the air, watching him choke and struggle for oxygen.

"Ack… I meant… gasp… that… that we should… be trying to… ack… find her?" he suggested weakly.

"You better believe it, you sack of Goomba droppings," Johnny hissed, before throwing him down to the floor. "Because of your putrid actions, my daughter is out there… lost and emotionally scarred from your sinful deed. Because of you, she may be in mortal peril… and I can do nothing about it. And because of you… I may never be able to see her again. And for that, I ought to have you crammed in Davy Jones' locker for the rest of your miserable life."

The shark pirate looked away from Avery's twitching body and scanned towards the rest of his crew.

"And don't you forget that, you scurvy dogs!" he shouted to them. "You will treat Jolene with equal respect as you have in me! Some of you may see her like nothing… but I never want to hear you mess with her again! Is that clear?!"

"Yes, sir!" they yelled in unison.

"Good. Because if I do hear you insulting or humiliating her… you best be hoping I don't find you when I'll hunt you down for the rest of your days. Now off with you lot!"

The whole gang had scrambled off, and began their search for the shark girl. Avery's friends timidly carried him out of the area, while Johnny marched to the edge of his ship, viewing the vast sea in the night's moonlight.

"I'm coming for you, my daughter… don't quit out on me now…," he whispered.

/

"Sigh… sigh… are we there yet?"

"No… we still got a long way to go… before we reach my home…"

"Ugh… figures…"

Jolene and Luke had been trudging through the deep tropical forest of Kumo Reef for nearly 40 minutes now. The pair were exhausted from their runaway, especially for the Lakitu boy. He had been pulling her non-stop since leaving the beach, and sweat was breaking out all over his skin. As for her, the shark girl was groaning in pain, because her tail had wood splinters all over from digging into the patchy ground.

"Why don't we… lie down for a while? I don't know about you… but I'm wiped out," Luke panted.

She had to agree with him. "Okay… we'll stop here… I don't want you to get… a heart attack now, do I?"

They rested themselves on a nearby fallen log, wheezing and trying to catch their breath. Han, who had been following them, went to sniff at the wild flowers and do his 'business' on a poor oak tree. Luke noticed something while they were relaxing in the shade.

"Wait a minute… aren't you a shark?" he asked Jolene.

There was a few seconds of silence. Then she burst out laughing from his sudden, obvious statement, while giving him a toothy grin. "Yep. Last time I checked…"

"But what I mean is… don't you need to be in the water at all times?"

The shark girl calmed down just enough to answer his question. "I'll be fine… I can survive for a couple of hours while on land," she explained. "So I won't die out too soon on you, alright?"

"Okay," he replied, feeling assured. "I just don't want to lose you… after we came this far."

She smirked at him. "You make it sound like we're a couple or something."

Luke's face lit up in horror and he blushed heavily while waving his hands in denial. "Oh no, no, no! I didn't mean it like that! I just say that because I just met you and… I wouldn't want to see a friend die because of me!"

"Alright, alright… I understand," she soothed him, relaxing her smirk to a simple smile. She kept looking at him with her exotic green eyes. "Exactly how old are you, Luke?"

The Lakitu boy gulped a bit. "I'm… I'm 13."

"Ah… so you would be at _that_ age now," Jolene mused. "It's always a funny time when one reaches puberty… your voice deepens, your body changes… and you start seeing people a bit differently. Tell me…" She clasped her hands together to where her lap would be. "Do you find me attractive?"

His face reddened even more. "Uh… uh… um… I… I can't… I can't really say…"

She laughed a little. "It's okay. I won't be mad if you say yes."

He shuffled his feet. It was really embarrassing for the Lakitu to make a response to her, mainly because he can't help but admit that… just by looking at the shark girl within the moonlight, she really looked dazzling.

"Um… maybe a little bit…," he confessed.

"Okay," she nodded. She could still see him squirming in discomfort. "There's nothing to be ashamed about, Luke. It's all natural for you. It's something that people go through at least once in their life, and they sooner or later get use to it. And it works the same way for everyone… even for me. Would it make you feel better if I told you I once had a crush on my father when I was your age?"

Luke perked his ears. "Really?"

"You bet. I was like you… really frightened of what was happening to me. Because I couldn't stop staring dreamily at him. I even kept a photo of him in my locker to look at every day," Jolene chuckled, recalling the memory vividly in her mind. "And I was trying to cover myself all the time, because I was physically developing in ways I never thought possible. One day, I hid myself in my closet because I didn't recognize myself in the mirror anymore. And my father found me in there, when I didn't came for supper eventually."

"What did he tell you?" he asked with interest. The Lakitu moved closer to her while sitting on the log.

"He told me why I wasn't at the table, eating my plate of barnacles," she smiled.

They both laughed at her joke. Han watched as they were making a scene while he dug in the ground for fun, murmuring in confusion of what they found so funny. The pair relaxed after what seemed like ages and Jolene went on with her story.

"Of course… I couldn't look at him then. I was too afraid to see his face, because he didn't seem like my father at the moment… just some oddly handsome guy. So I just let him know everything of what bothered me. And he sat down with me, holding me dearly in his arms, telling me that it was just a phase that I was going through. And I shouldn't worry too much about it. I didn't know what he meant at that time… but he told me that I was going to become a beautiful woman."

They stood there silently for a minute. The sounds of crickets played in the background, while the occasional bird chirp echoed in the trees. Luke was at a total loss for words by the information that she gave him. He read many books about the changes that a person goes through in puberty, but he never heard it told by personal experience before. And now, he felt a lot better knowing it other than in context.

The Lakitu twiddled his thumbs, unsure of what to say right now, while Jolene continued to watch him with concern.

"Are you okay, Luke?" she spoke softly. "Or are you still uncomfortable?"

"Huh?" He snapped out of his thoughts and back in reality. "Oh… no. I'm fine now. I was just merely contemplating…"

She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. "Contemplating…?"

"Thinking," he elaborated. "I meant that I was thinking."

"Oh… I see." The shark girl eyed the ground for a while before returning her gaze to him with a smile. "You know… for someone who acts nervous and clumsy like any teen, you really sound smart for your age."

He blushed in modesty before returning a smile of his own. "Thanks… My family tries their best to give me all the knowledge I know today, and I'm happy for that. Even though we don't get along sometimes, I still can't help but express my gratitude to them for what they did for me."

"That's true," she agreed. "Even though my father makes me want to hate him at times… deep down, I know that I'll still love him for keeping me in his care. Even if it don't see him again…" Jolene delicately put a hand to her head when it started pounding painfully.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing. Don't worry about me, Luke," she mumbled. She sounded a little woozy and felt a bit light-headed. "But I think we should get going again… my skin needs some moist… moisture…" All of a sudden, she collapsed in a heap on the log. The Lakitu boy panicked when he saw her unconscious, heaving once in a while.

"J-Jolene? Jolene! Oh no…," he stammered. "Hold on! I'll g-get you some water!"

Very quickly, he fiddled in one of his pockets and pulled out a strange metallic device. It was a cross between a lighter and a garden hose attachment. And upon him pressing a certain button, a loud hiss was made as the device sucked up some of the air around them. A steady stream of clear liquid poured inside a plastic container at the bottom.

Luke then hovered over the shark girl while pressing a second button. A fine mist of moisture squirted out of the capsule, and he started applying a generous amount of it on her body. First he started watering a bit on her face… then aimed all over her torso and tail, making sure to even get some on her back. And it wasn't long before she started to twitch and opened her eyes again.

"Uhh… wha…? What happened?" she groaned.

"You just blacked out from dehydration right out of the blue!" he told her. "You're lucky I have my Humidi-sorber on me, or I could have lost you right there and then!"

She blinked few times before staring at him. "You… you saved me?"

"Yeah. But let's not talk about that right now. We need to get you somewhere wet, pronto! Han, come!" He bended down to have her cling onto him… and they were off again. The Spiny abandoned his attention of a caterpillar crawling on a dead twig and lumbered after them. It was a while before the group found themselves out of the forest and into the residential area. Just in front of him, Luke smiled while panting as he saw his house just 10 meters away.

He felt more strain on his back and checked behind him to see Jolene clutching tightly onto him, moaning slightly while her energy was fading again. Her tail hanged limp on the pavement of the road they were on.

"Come on now, Jolene! Just a bit more to go!" he urged her. "We're almost there!"

She shivered while struggling to combat the blackness that was engulfing her. "Ohhh… I… I don't know if I have any strength left in me, Luke…"

"Yes you do! You just need to fight it for a little longer! I won't give up on you!"

Reluctantly, but giving it all she's got, the shark girl pushed the ground behind her with her strong appendage. She gritted her teeth, forcing herself to maintain consciousness, while they climbed up the hill to his front door. The Lakitu went to grab the handle and twist it… but realized it was locked.

"Darn! They must have left trying to find me! They think I've gone missing!" he muttered, pounding the wooden frame. Then he came up with an idea. "Here, Han! Go unlock the door for me! Go on, boy!"

The Spiny heard him, hopped up the steps and went through the doggy flap for a second. There was some scratching inside, a click was heard, and the door swung open for the pair. Han sat proudly before them, tongue hanging out while waggling his stubby tail.

"Good boy! Good Spiny!" he said while patting his pet's head.

"He… he actually opens doors for you?" Jolene asked, totally impressed.

"Not all the time. Only when I get locked out when I don't have my key on me. Now let's keep going! We're not out of the woods yet!"

"But wait… you said we're near your house…"

"I meant that as a figure of speech!" he explained impatiently. "Come on now! !"

Luke turned around and tugged her by grabbing her hands, while still flapping her tail to propel herself. He dragged her inside the dwelling and headed to the direction of his bathroom. Beads of sweat dripped on the side of his head while bringing Jolene towards the tub. He turned on both taps of hot and cold, a rush of water spewing out from the tap.

"Alright, just one more obstacle now. Just climb up here and you're home free," the Lakitu coaxed her, while picking up a handful of liquid and splashing some on her dreary face. Eying the water hungrily, the shark girl pulled herself up and over into the bathtub.

"Urrrr… this thing is tiny!" she grunted, as she squeezed her whole self into the small container… at least in her perspective.

"Well, it wasn't meant to hold people that are 8 feet tall, you know," Luke chuckled. "Let alone shark creatures. Here, I'll help you…"

He wedged her massive tail into the already cramp space, so that she could cover her whole body in the water.

"Ahhhh… much better. That wasn't supposed to be twisted like that. Mmmm…" She closed her eyes and laid her back against the wall, while dousing herself in the heavenly fluid. She sighed while her strength slowly returned to her.

"You no longer feel faint?" the Lakitu asked, adjusting his glasses since they almost fell off his face while carrying her.

"No. But I'm going to stay here for a while. Just so I can replenish myself."

He nodded while heading for the door. "Okay. I'll just be gone for a bit. I need to finish my supper."

"You do that then..."

He exited the bathroom, leaving Jolene to her solitude. Luke pulled out his cold dinner of spaghetti from the fridge (at least they remembered to save it for later, he thought) and set it in the microwave. He was waiting for his food to warm up… when he heard somebody coming in from the front door.

"Honey! Someone broke into our house!" a female voice exclaimed in a horrified tone.

"Oh no! They better not have taken my new purse! If they did, I'm gonna freak out!"

"Calm down, Lea! Ohhh… Do you think they're still in there, Lando?"

A third voice, which was a male one this time, let out a sigh. "Lumiya… if they are robbing our home, then why do I hear one of them cooking food in the kitchen?"

Uh oh, Luke thought. Here come the waterworks and heavy explanations. He braced himself as he saw his mother come into the dining room, gasped when she saw her son and tightly hugged him. Along with her came the rest of the family. The Lakitu boy watched his dad breathed out a sigh of relief, while his sister was less than thrilled to see her brother, crossing her arms in annoyance.

"Oh, Luke! I thought that we lost you for good!" Lumiya cried, tears falling from her face. "You gave us quite a big scare!"

"You don't have to worry anymore, Mom. I'm okay now," he struggled to say, as he squirming in her grip.

"No, you're not okay! Just look at you!" She examined in horror of the many bruise marks all over her son's body. "Where in Star Road have you been?"

It didn't feel great for Luke to make up lies. But he was sure that telling the truth that he was chased by a deranged pirate while on the beach, and having to cross the depths of the Kumo Reef rainforest, all to save a large shark girl who was now taking a dip in their bathtub… would most definitely warrant a CAT scan and psychiatrist for 9 months from his family's behalf. So he would need to wing something up.

"I was just taking a jog on the way home and I slipped on a rock cliff," he fibbed. "It wasn't too bad of a fall, if you're asking."

"Ohhh… well, next time… tell us how long you're going to be gone for, okay honey?" his mother sniffled. "You had me worried sick about you!"

"Luke, may I ask what you're doing right now?" Lando questioned, his hands setting on his waist.

"Uh… reheating my dinner?"

"Other than that. Why do I also hear running water in the bathroom? And you're out here in the kitchen?"

His son made a mental slap on the head. Oh shoot, he thought. I forgot to tell Jolene to turn off the bathtub! Or show her _how_ to turn off the bathtub!

Lando was starting to head for the room in question, supposedly to shut off the tap, before Luke halted him in his tracks.

"No, dad! It's okay!" he yelled, while flailing his arms. "I was about to take a bath _after_ I eat!"

His father looked at him quizzically. "But what for? Why not do one at a time first instead of complicating things?"

"Uh… because… uh…" Luke was panicking, as he had no other excuse to come up with. He watched in terror as Lando was about to enter the bathroom, until…

"Dear, it's not your business to intimidate him! Let him do what he wants to do!" Lumiya chided. "I'm sure he just wants to soothe his bruises with a nice, hot bath!" She went to her son and gave him a smile. "Why don't you wash up first _before_ you eat, okay? You of all people should know not to go into the water _after_ a meal."

Luke laughed nervously. "I guess it must have slipped my mind. Okay, I'll bathe now."

"Good. And don't forget to clean up afterwards, alright?" she added.

The Lakitu boy nodded before quickly slipping into the bathroom. From outside, he could hear his mom and dad argue about their son's actions, while Lea grumbled and most likely left them to lie down on her bed.

"What was all the commotion?" Jolene whispered, surprised to see him back so soon.

"Just my parents…," he sighed in anxiety. "Boy, that was too close…"

"What were they doing with you? Were they worried about you?"

"A little bit. They only asked me where I went and all. Oh, I better shut this thing off…" He twisted the knobs to cease the water flow, which almost filled the tub to the brim. He slouched against a wall. "Man… this has been one crazy day."

The shark girl tilted her head to the side. "Are you feeling alright, Luke? What's the matter?"

He breathed deeply and exhaled through his nose. "Just stressed, is all."

"How come?"

"Because… sigh… I mean… how am I going to explain everything, if Mom or Dad find you here? And what would they say? Would they be angry? Would they be frightened? I don't know what will happen," the Lakitu worried.

"I'm sure you could make them understand some way," she pointed out.

"No, they won't… the only thing I know is that they'll make me want to get rid of you afterwards. And I don't want you to leave…" Luke silently wept where he sat. Jolene felt deep concern for him.

"You know you can't keep me forever. I have to get back to my life sooner or later."

"I know… sniff… I wish this wasn't so hard…," he quavered.

"Aww… come here. Hush now." He went up to her and she gave him a big motherly hug. He sobbed in her arms while she comforted him close to her breast. They cuddled each other for what seemed like eternity.

What am I going to do with him, she thought. He's already so attached to me that it's breaking his heart to see me go. And it's not like I could take him with me. He can't breath in the water, his body would be crushed from the deep pressure… not to mention that it wouldn't be fair for him to leave his family behind. And father wouldn't want me to get near him again. I'll have to part ways with him slowly and gently to make it hurt less…

Jolene patted his hair tenderly while he calmed down. "Shhh… relax… I'm not going to suddenly vanish in front of you, am I? I'm still here, right?"

"Sniff… yeah…"

"Alright. And just so it could make you feel better, I'll stay with you… just for tonight." When she noticed he clung onto her a little tighter, she hushed him more. "Now, now… I know it's not easy… but I also know and you know that we can't be together. I'm at least 7 years older than you." She let out a light-hearted laugh. "I'm sure you don't want to get _that_ deep into a relationship."

Luke joined in her laugh. "Hahaha… yeah, I guess that would be silly. I mean, us being together like a couple? I'd prefer if we were just best friends."

She smiled. "I'm happy that you'd rather want that to be between us. And really? You'd want a shark for a friend?" she asked, feeling very humbled.

"Absolutely! I never met anyone who I had so much in common with… well, besides my smarts that is. Hehehehe…"

"Really," Jolene smirked. "How so?"

"Well… we both have dads that we have various problems with, but we still love them. We both feel like outsiders… we know what it's like to be picked on… and believe me, I've been picked on just for being a nerd within a group of nerds," he described while blushing. "We both don't like being alone… and we like the color blue," he added while looking at her complexion.

The shark girl chuckled. "I didn't have much of a choice in skin color when I was born into this world, Luke. But yes… I would have to say that I like blue out of the others…" She suddenly gone very quiet while remembering something. "You know… I never did say thank you when you saved my life on the way here."

The Lakitu boy blushed a little harder. "Hehe… It was nothing."

A rapid knock from the door frightened them both. They could hear Lumiya's voice from outside. "Luke? Are you taking your bath? I don't hear you washing in there! Is everything okay?"

"Uh… yes, Mom! Just trying to find some bubble bath soap!"

"It should be in the bottom drawer, next to the toilet paper! Now no dawdling! Your meal is getting cold again!" They heard the mother Lakitu leave again.

Jolene looked down on him with a sly smile. "So you haven't taken your bath yet, huh? Let's fix that… come here." She picked him up by his sides like a small doll and set him into the tub with her.

"No, wait! I haven't even got my dirty clothes off yet!" he protested while she gathered some water and dumped it on his head.

"Forget it, kiddo. You're not going to unchanged in front of me."

"Well… can I at least get my jacket off? It's my favourite and I rather not get it wet…"

"Hahaha… okay, I'll let you do that first," she replied. After Luke removed his jacket and dropped it to the floor, she picked up a shampoo bottle and squeezed some into her hand. "Now stand still."

She lathered the shampoo into his hair, which was mucked with sand and mud from today's adventure, and scrubbed every strand to get it clean. He kept his eyes closed the entire time, so to avoid the suds from stinging them. The bottle did say "tear-free", but the Lakitu didn't trust labels. When his locks were fully covered with bubbles, Jolene scooped up some water and rinsed his head again.

"This is the weirdest bath I ever had," Luke stated.

"Not much so for me," Jolene told him. "My father usually does this when I was little. Does your mother do this to you still?"

"Nope. I usually wash myself alone."

"Ah, I see."

A nagging question came to the Lakitu boy's mind that really made him curious. "You know… I never heard you talk about anyone other than your dad… what about your mom? What's she like?"

All of a sudden, the shark girl stopped scrubbing him and went silent. He turned to look up at her, and saw a steady tear leak out from her green eyes. Luke felt a chill crawl over him, wondering if he shouldn't have brought that up.

"Are… are you okay?" he asked timidly.

"Yeah… I'm o-okay. It's just…" She struggled to hold in her sadness while she talked. "…I never knew much about my mother. I never even knew what happened to her… My father always kept her quiet when I ask him. It's as though he doesn't like talking about her…"

"I'm sorry…"

"It's alright, Luke. You didn't mean it."

"No, I meant… I'm sorry that you don't know about your mom," he explained. He twisted around to hug her middle. "I hope you find her one day…"

She was surprised to see his quick concern for her, but didn't want to spoil the mood. She held him affectionately.

"I hope so too…"

/

After the bath (and after Luke finally ate his supper), it was a hassle to get Jolene into his bedroom, since anyone at any time can pop into the halls and discover the large female shark in front of them.

Luckily everyone had bathed before going to searching for the Lakitu boy, so the pair of them could hide in the bathroom until his family went to sleep for the night. It was past 10pm when he decided that they make their move.

"Now don't thud your tail too hard on the carpet, or you'll wake them up for sure," he whispered.

"Relax… I'm not going to deliberately do that."

She gently crawled on the floor, moving herself a bit like an inchworm, while Luke tugged as quick and hard as he could. They made it into his bedroom without any problems, and he shut and locked the door before anyone saw his shark friend.

"Sigh… I think I might reconsider Phys. Ed. again in my curriculum," he panted. After recovering a bit from the exercise, he stuck out his arms to his sides like he was presenting something. "Anyways… welcome to my humble domain!"

Jolene looked around the place. "Looks cozy… if a bit on the small side. Man, why is it that you humans are so tiny?" she whined.

"Lakitu… not human. There hasn't been a human that's stepped foot on this island for 500 years… well, except for my dad. He was made an exception. Don't know why, thought."

She spotted something on his desk and pulled herself closer to it. "What's that?"

He looked to what interested her. "Oh, that? That's my carburetor I'm working on," Luke claimed, picking it up so she could examine it. "I'm trying to make it run smoothly so I can get my latest invention to work."

"I didn't know you were an inventor," she smiled.

The Lakitu blushed in modesty. "It's only something I like to do as a hobby. But many people have really taken a hold of my genius lately. So they look up to me for when they need their stuff fixed. But it's only because I really like to help others…"

She turned and looked in awe of the little mechanical device. "What does a carburetor do exactly?"

"Uh… it may be hard to understand…," he elaborated. "But basically, it stirs up the fuel and oxygen, quickly burning it up, and releasing the gases to the cylinders inside an engine. To put it in easier terms, it's what makes vehicles like cars, boats and airplanes able to move. Or otherwise, without it… the entire thing is useless." He gently plucked the carburetor from her hands and looked at it with pity. "So far… it's not mixing the fuel properly needed to make my Nimbus Mark 9 run."

"Is it a vehicle too?"

Luke's eyes lit up in realization. "Oh yeah! I didn't show you the Mark 9! I should show you it tomorrow before you go! It's an amazing machine!" The shark girl watched him put his hands on his chin, elbows on the desk and staring off dreamily into space. "It's a remarkable aircraft design that I've put half my life into. If I get it ready, it should fly at high speeds with almost no drag, be totally impervious to rain, sleet, snow and lightning… and travel from one corner of the world to another on a whim… sigh…"

All of this wondrous fantasizing made her giggle to see him so content. She patted his shoulder. "Let's dream about that another day, kiddo. Right now, I'm sure you're getting sleepy."

"No way! I'm not… tired!" he denied, while stifling a yawn.

"Your brain may say so… but your body says something else," she smirked. She lifted him up and cradled him. "Come on now… let's go to bed."

"But I don't want to go to sleep! I want to stay up all night with you!" He tried to move, but the warmth of her body made him felt drowsy and comfortable. She slowly pushed herself with her tail until she was at his mattress, and laid him there.

"Hahaha… genius or not, no matter what age you are, all you kids are the same when it comes to bedtime," Jolene remarked. She pulled the blankets over him and tucked them in to keep him in place.

"But… what about… when you need moisture again?" he mumbled, fighting to stay awake.

She rested a hand to his chest. "Don't worry about me. I got enough reserves to last the night when I go to sleep. I don't need as much water when I'm in my relaxed state."

"You won't go anywhere… will you?"

"Of course not. I'll still be here when you wake up. Enough now… close your eyes."

As much as Luke wanted to fight it, he couldn't keep his exhaustion from enveloping him. He shut his eyes, hoping to get a goodnight's rest. But there was a couple questions that still lingered in his head when the shark girl laid her head and arms on top of him.

"Jolene…?"

"Yes, Luke?"

"If we… had met each other differently on that beach… would you still have been friends with me?" he asked.

She pondered the question for a bit. "Maybe… I really don't know," she answered. Her sleepiness was inevitably catching up to her.

The Lakitu boy peeped his vision for a second. "I think… it might have been fate… that brought us together. Not sure why… but it's a feeling I'm getting… for some reason. Do you think so?" he murmured.

"Could be…"

"Do you still see me… as a friend, Jolene?"

She smiled. "Yes, I do Luke… Go to sleep now…"

/

It was like that night all over again. He could feel it. The same moonlight… the same calm waters… same atmosphere. He prayed that maybe… just maybe… that this could be the night she would return. But as much as Johnny wished it could happen, he was only getting his hopes up for nothing…

The shark pirate still observed the seas every night, looking for his mermaid love. And like every other night for the past 20 years… nothing occurred, no matter the circumstances. Sometimes he wondered if it was all in vain to still be doing this anymore. He didn't get word nor message from her for the longest time. Not once since that period. It only made his heart ache more to expect her to reappear with full affection and adoration for him, only to know painfully that she won't return to him that easily.

The image of her was constantly in his mind. He still vividly remembered her pink hair, her bright shiny skin, those mesmerizing green eyes… he slammed on the rail of his boat when he couldn't take the pain any longer. He let out a howl to the air.

"Why did you leave me?!," he hollered in anger. "Why can't you come back now?! I need you more than ever!" His reply was still that same eerie sound. Silence. Johnny slumped back on the rail and sobbed for what seemed like the umpteenth time.

"I'm sorry, my dear… I didn't mean to lash out…," the shark choked up.

He gripped his head and shook it, realizing he was talking to no one. The revelation struck him like a sword through his chest. I'm already going crazy, he thought. It won't be long before my crew knows of my insanity. Or that I might be enough of a lunatic to hop off my ship and wander in search of her for the rest of my life… Oh, Star Road… give me strength…

"Sir, are you alright?"

Johnny jumped in fright, turned around and brandished his sword at the intruder. "Who dares disturb my peace and quiet?! Oh… it's you…" He re-sheathed his weapon after finding out it was Rusty, the nervous mechanical engineer. The Bandana Blue shivered when the tip of his blade was a mere inch from his snout.

"What you be doing here, little scallywag?" the shark captain inquired. "Curfew was after 10pm…"

"I… I know, s-sir. I was j-just getting some s-sleeping pills on the way h-here," Rusty quavered. "W-Who may I ask w-were you t-talking to?"

"It be none of your business, cadet. Do not ask that question again."

"S-Sorry, sir…"

Johnny groaned. "Will you stopping that infernal stutter of yours? It's hard enough to understand you, what with that whistling from your nose!"

"I a-apologize… uh, ahem… I apologized, sir," the Bandana Blue responded after clearing his voice. "Uh… would you want… me to do anything?"

The shark pirate wanted to bark at him to go back to his bunk… but the thoughts of his wife kept torturing him like knife wounds. He figured that any company rather than isolation would be a better choice. He wafted his fin to him.

"Come stand beside me, cadet," he spoke in a fatherly tone.

Timidly, Rusty shuffled his feet until he was right next to his boss. The poor little shark trembled just by being near him.

"Relax, me bucko… Don't think I be making you walking the plank for this. I only want a simple chat." Johnny turned back to his attention to the ocean, waiting for his cohort to answer. When he didn't, the shark pirate then started up the conversation.

"Tis' a relaxing moonlight this evening for song, am I right?" he noted, gazing at the clear, calm waters. "It be the perfect time for a navel gang and their vessel to dance and chant with good cheer, would you agree?"

"Uh… yeah," Rusty mumbled. His voice was just above a whisper. "It's a good time for karaoke night."

That made the pirate captain laugh kindly. "Hahaha… not that kind of song, my boy. You were yet to be born when we did things traditionally. Back then… us sailors would learn shanties from the heart and mind. There were no machines or sheets of paper to memorize our lyrics. Only our voices and ears. Because our music were special secrets we handed down from generation to generation."

He looked down at his comrade. "Mind if I tell you a song that I used to sing when I was but a young lad such as yourself?" he asked.

The Bandana Blue scratched his head in nervousness. He really wanted to go to bed, but he also didn't want to anger his captain. "Um… sure," was his response. Things were quiet for a moment… then Johnny slowly hummed a tune.

"_Oh… The waves broke in when we set for sail, and the gale did ever flow. The rain did stung to our eyes and nose, but away we dared to go…_"

He waited for a minute, trying to remember the next verse before continuing.

"_The storm came in as we hang for life, the danger ever grow. But we laughed our hearts while we sailed the seas, cause' we never feared it so._"

Rusty's face lit up when it started to come back to him. "Hang on… I remember my mom singing this to me when I was little. She never knew what it was called, but my grandpa sometimes made melodies like this to her before she had me."

"Ah… so you _were_ old enough to know a few, eh?" the shark pirate smiled. "Tell me… what be the next line now?"

His cadet thought back to his childhood. It was a struggle, since it was a long time that his mother sang to him, but it wasn't long before he whispered the words…

"_We sung all day and we sung all night, through sun and stars and moon. And fish did splash when we made our catch, and we hoped to head home soon._"

"Oh… you know the old version of the song, matey. That's not bad for a novice sailor, I'm impressed," Johnny marvelled.

"Hehehe… thanks, sir," Rusty meekly replied.

The pirate captain chuckled again. "I'm sure if you know that verse, you should be able to say the rest with me."

"Okay then."

And pretty soon, the night air was filled with the joyous chants of both sharks' singing voices.

"_Avast ye mates, we head for shore! We'll celebrate with cheer! And we will dance and say it proud, 'A good life we have here'! Our fun not stop, for we'll not rest, we'll do so all day long! We plunder hither, tatter there! Cause' that's the pirate song…_"

Their shanty ended when they heard a little noise coming from the ocean. Both sharks were a bit mystified, since their ship was the only boat out here for miles. But it wasn't a boat that was coming, nor was it a group of divers either. It was a fainting drumming that rippled the water to no end.

Johnny gasped. It was that same rumble… the one that occurred when she left… He quickly scanned the horizon, in the hopes that it may be her return at last.

"What is it, sir?" Rusty asked, finding his behaviour strange.

"Shhh! Not a peep!"

"O-Okay, sir…"

The pirate captain tuned in both ears, while keeping on the lookout for anything out of the ordinary. He didn't even blink, thinking he might miss something if he did. His eyes were like high beams, seeming to light up where his vision was, as they hoped against hope that he might see his beloved again…

But no… the drumming ceased. Nothing had changed. And Johnny was once again torn in half for believing the impossible would happen. He relaxed his posture, feeling so defeated.

"Is it a-alright to speak a-again, sir?" the Bandana Blue whispered.

"Yes… you may…," he sighed. The old shark couldn't take the pain anymore. If he didn't tell someone, it was going to eventually cost his sanity. He looked down again to his cohort. "I'm going to reveal something that I haven't told another soul to for years. You be up for it, matey?"

"I… I g-guess so, sir…"

"No! It must be a yes or no, cadet! There is no middle ground! Are you willing to listen to what I'm about to say or not?" his captain barked.

Rusty felt scared to be near his boss when he was like this. But his curiosity also stung him, and he wanted to know. After all, he was good at keeping secrets.

"Y-Yes, sir."

"You sure? Cause if you listen to this, my boy… there is no turning back."

"I'm sure, sir," the Bandana Blue replied.

Johnny looked to his left and to his right, to make sure they're completely alone. He didn't want to tell his dark past to anyone, but it was really killing him to not divulge the information. He took a deep breath and exhaled through his snout.

"I met a woman once…"

"Oh…" The geeky shark mused over carefully. "Was she pretty?"

"She was beautiful…," he smiled, feeling much better as his heartache started to ebb away from him. "The most dazzling creature that I'll ever encounter… and she plundered my heart. We were about to seek the world with each other, thinking that nothing will come in between us… but it wasn't meant to be…"

He pointed to the water briefly. "That quake we heard a moment ago… that was the last time I ever saw her. She dared not to explain the reason, but did give me a wonderful gift to keep me remembering her…"

"What would that be, sir?" Rusty wondered.

The pirate captain looked once more at him, trying his hardest not to cry. Because pirates don't cry in front of each other.

"My only daughter…," he muttered.

The Bandana Blue was dazed by the answer. "Wait… you don't mean… Jolene?"

"Aye, tis' true…"

"Wow… b-but you always t-told us that you a-adopted her when she was an a-abandoned child!"

"Half-true. She was abandoned by her mother many years ago," Johnny claimed. "But she is truly my flesh and blood…" He suddenly got close to him. "And you must never repeat this to anyone, am I clear?" he added with a growl.

"Y-Yes, sir…," the small pirate agreed in fear.

"If I get wind that you spill this secret to the others… you shall find yourself the main course for King Calamari's dinner. You swear?"

"I s-swear, sir!"

"Good… now off to bed with you," his captain dismissed him. Rusty waddled quickly before he would become fish food. It would be the last time the little shark chose to not bring his sleeping pills with him after curfew. He was almost out of earshot… but not before he was halted one last time.

"One more thing… I thank you for listening, honourable cadet."

"Y-You're welcome, sir…"

After he finally ran off, the old pirate shark went back to observing the sea. His mind was at peace now… but he still had longing for his lover. If only she'd returned now, he thought. But that won't happen now… it wasn't the right time yet. And he was more and more sure that that day is going to come soon. And when it did… they'll be a proper family again.

"If only you could see our daughter, my sweet… I'm sure you'd be proud of her…," Johnny uttered.

It was that moment that he decided to turn in too. There was not much more to see tonight. He headed for his private quarters, thinking of how much easier he'll rest now…

Tomorrow was another day he can wait a little longer for…

/

(End of Part 2)


	3. Chapter 3: First Steps

A Sharkmaid's Tale

By: Virtualboy2558

/

Disclaimer: Super Mario RPG is Copyrights of Nintendo, Square, and Shigeru Miyamoto. I do not own, nor profit, from any or all of the characters mentioned.

/

Everything was quiet in the McCloud home that following morning. You could hear the distant sounds of ships blaring their horns at the old harbour, with the occasional seagull chirp and Chain Chomp barking at early-rising joggers on the streets.

And still resting on Luke's bed was Jolene, who seemed content with snuggling close to her friend at his chest. Unintentionally, she was nibbling gently on his hand with her sharp teeth, while he continued to sleep without any signs of flinching or pain. At the foot of the mattress, Han was dozing off on top of the Lakitu boy's muddy shoes. They haven't been cleaned since yesterday's escapade, and they reeked from all the sweaty exertion. But the Spiny didn't seem to mind the odor at all.

It wasn't long before sunlight peaked over the horizon and through the window of the humble room, shining softly on the pair. The shark girl was the first to open her bleary, vivid green eyes.

"Mmm… uhhh… give me 5 more minutes please…," she mumbled half-consciously. She let out a long yawn that made her stretch out her body from head to tailfin, before she collapsed upon the bed to go back to sleep.

But her peace was once again interrupted by a sharp jab on her tail. She lifted herself up again and checked to see who or what was causing her discomfort… only to see Han's face peering over the edge, happily panting and with a wagging tail.

Jolene smiled as she reached out to pet him. "Hey, little fella… had a good nap?"

The Spiny murmured as he looked over her shoulder and saw his owner still in dreamland. She turned her head to see what Han was looking at. The Lakitu boy was breathing calmly while she watched him.

"Hahaha… it seems our little friend needs a bit of a wake-up call," she whispered to the spiky pet. She let out a smirk while eying him. "How about I let you do that job for me?"

The shark girl lifted Han's underbelly and set him on the sheets. For a while, the creature examined his surroundings, scratching his head with its hind leg… and then charged up to his owner to give him a big lick on the cheeks.

"Gah! What the…?! What's going on?!" Luke freaked out and suddenly sat upright from his bed, totally bolting out of his sheets. His stringy hair was plastered on the side of his face, while his beady black eyes were on high alert. He looked as though he saw a ghost.

Jolene couldn't help but giggle at his appearance. "Good morning, sleepyhead."

"Huh? Oh… it's just you, Jolene," he sighed. He clutched a hand near his heart. "Jeepers… you scared the heck out of me…"

"Really? That's weird. Normally, my father would do something like that to get me up… because I'm such a heavy sleeper at dawn," she explained.

"I don't have anyone who does that to me. My alarm clock usually does the job." The Lakitu boy rubbed out the crust that formed around his eyes. "Sigh… speaking of which… what time is it right now?"

She checked the LED clock that rested on his nightstand. "It says it's 10:04," she answered.

Luke looked even more awake than ever. He stared at his bedroom door. "That's funny… my family should be up to tell me to get breakfast right now. Unless…" He slapped his forehead in realization. "Ugh… of course. Mom's probably taken Leia to her dance recital, and Dad is most likely at the Annual Fishing Derby, getting ready to bring me with him."

Jolene was slightly shocked. "You mean to say… that no one is here? That they left you all alone?"

"I guess so. But I don't really mind," he responded, as he put on his glasses and walked to his drawer to get some clothes. "They already trust me to look over the house while they're away. And if something bad happens, I could always call them for help."

"Okay then… just making sure that they didn't place too big of a responsibility on you," the shark girl spoke. "Even though you're a genius, there's every chance that someone can break in here and you'd be clueless on how to defend yourself. Hahaha… luckily you have me to protect you." A loud gurgle escaped from her belly, surprising both Luke and Han.

"What on Star Road was that?"

She blushed hard while both of them stared at her. "Sorry about that. Oh man… I'm completely famished. I haven't had anything to eat since… since yesterday morning, in fact!" She rubbed her stomach in anxiety as it continued to grumble. "I really need to get something to sate my hunger. Do you have something in your pantry?"

"Umm… sure," Luke shrugged. "We got lots of stuff in the refrigerator. Some of it is leftovers, but I could probably whip something up if you want it fresh."

"Fresh, spoiled… I don't care. I'm starved as a Piranha Plant!" she exclaimed.

After getting dressed, and a brief drag over to the kitchen, the Lakitu boy placed her near the ice box so that she could choose what she want to digest. Jolene picked through a jar of pickles, a bag of apples, a cardboard box containing half a cheese pizza, two heads of lettuce, a loaf of bread, a jar of peanut butter, three cartons of milk, a pot of chicken noodle soup, three radishes, two stalks of celery, a tin with three slices of lemon pie, a pot full of last night's spaghetti, and a brick of cheese. But none of it looked appetizing to her. She shook her head in mild disgust.

"Ugh… how do you guys eat all this? Almost all of it is processed food! And vegetables are not going to settle well in my digestive track! Don't you have any meat around here?"

Luke cringed a little. "Uh… we don't have any meat. My whole family are vegetarians… well, except for Han of course. He eats a slab of wet Chain Chomp food and it does him fine."

"Well, I'm certainly NOT going to eat animal food," Jolene declared. "I need to have something natural AND fleshy… like a big fish or something. You'll have to go get some proper food for me… and fast. Or I might have to devour the closest creature near me…" At this point, her pupils dilated as she eyed Luke hungrily. And she bared out each of her razor-sharp teeth. He panicked as she was about to lunge for him… but she recovered herself in time. The shark girl shook her head and looked at him fearfully.

"Oh no… I'm already resorting to mangling my friend as a meal! Luke… you'll have to get me some meat quick! Or I won't be able to control myself! Just find what you can, please! Hurry!"

/

It wasn't an uncommon thing for people to buy edible sea-life in the early hours of the morning. Especially if you happen to be shopping down at Kumo Reef's harbour down at the north-east coastline. And even more so if you're a sailor/fisherman in need of some bait.

Luke peddled on his battered 10-speed bike as fast as he could, hoping against hope that one of the shops were opened down at the docks. He brought Han with him (he didn't want to come back home, only to find Spiny remains lying around a certain carnivorous shark girl) and placed him inside his basket. His pet basked in the salty air that emitted from the nearby ocean.

He was also hoping he didn't bump into his dad while he was shopping. The last thing he needed to be doing was listening to a yarn's length of some old fishing tale, or be dragged into the Fishing Derby before giving his aquatic friend her lunch.

"Ah… I see ye be spottin' me stock of Northern Cheep-Cheep," a local sailor growled. "Best tastin' fish in all the Eight Worlds, and guaranteed fresh! Ye be the talk of the party tonight if ye be servin' this at whatever occasion ye be plannin'! Only 10 coins each!"

"I'll take 3 of them!" Luke shouted, jamming them all in his bag while he dispense the right amount of change. "Do you also have any big catches too? I'm feeding a rather… uh… _big_ crowd today!"

The fisherman grinned a toothy grin. "Aye aye, me bucko! I have Trouters imported directly from Subcon, Giant Bloopers fished from the clean waters of the Midas River… what ye be looking for?"

"Anything! Just show me the biggest, least expensive fish you have!"

"Huh? Luke, is that you?"

A chill ran down the Lakitu boy's back as he carefully glanced behind him. To his horror, he could see his dad walking close to where he is. But thankfully, the old human was looking in the opposite direction.

"There ye be! One Giant Blooper and 5 Porcu-Puffers! That be 75 coins in… total… Wait, lad! You be getting a 35% discount if ye buy one more Cheep-Cheep!"

But Luke was off in a blink of an eye on his bike, along with all his groceries, before Lando could spot or hear him.

/

By the time he got back home, he was wheezing from so much exhaustion. He laid down his bags of fish food in front of Jolene, while he collapsed on the floor in a heap. "Sigh… sigh… that's all I could get… in such short notice," he panted. "I couldn't… stay too long, though. Dad… had almost found me. "

The shark girl brought a dead Cheep-Cheep close to her nose, gave a whiff… and began tearing through it like she haven't ate in months. She chewed and swallowed every inch of skin off its carcass until there was only bones left. She devoured it in less than 10 seconds flat. And it wasn't long before she grabbed another one and grinded through that as well.

She went through almost the entire bag in about 5 minutes. And she still showed no sign of slowing down her feeding frenzy. Luke was appalled by how she had eaten so much food in so little time. He swiped a Porcu-Puffer just in time before she clawed for it.

"Whoa! You have to calm down!" he advised. "If you just chug it all away, it's going to give you some nasty indigestion!"

"This is how I always eat, Luke. When you get hungry like me, there's no time to pick through with your utensils," she remarked, slightly annoyed that he took her meal away. "Now give me that back before I have to pounce you and draw blood." Again, her eyes were showing her untamed, ferocious shark side… and she began crawling towards him for a bite into his supple and tasty skin.

"Now hold on, Jolene! That's no way to act! Please, just give me a minute to explain… YAH!" His body got knocked down to the floor, and was now being crushed, as she thrust herself on top of him. He tried to wrestle out of her weight, but she grabbed his shoulders to prevent him from escaping.

She was grunting heavily, her unsatisfied hunger making her look dangerous and violent. It was like she was under a trance without her food to occupy her… and if she didn't get it soon, she could easily rip open through his ribcage without a second thought.

"W-Wait! J-Just give me moment! I… I… I can clone more fish for you to eat… if you let me take this sample first!," Luke yelled.

At once, Jolene froze… her jaw just millimeters away from his torso. Her face no longer had that glazed, blood-thirsty look as she looked back to him. She was half curious of hearing how he can help her get more food… and half ashamed of herself for once again putting his life in danger.

"You'd… you'd do that for me?" It was quite a struggle to keep her feral instincts from lashing out.

"Yes, of course! If you can just get off me… we'll get down to the lab… and you can feast to your heart's content."

Slowly, the shark girl removed herself from his chest, and laid down on the ground on her side. Luke in turn went to pick himself up and checked to see if his bones were broken. After seeing he was okay, he then grabbed her by the hands and dragged her towards the end of the hallway. From there, a solitary door was locked up by a numeric keypad. The Lakitu boy pressed a series of buttons on the keypad, it whirred for a moment… and the door swung open.

The inside of the room used to be a large storage area, about 50 by 100 feet in size and 20 feet to the ceiling. The walls and floor were made of a solid concrete mix, and the entire place was held up by tall steel girders. It was like they were inside a construction warehouse… save for the dozens of inventions and large machinery that littered the room.

"Oh my stars… this… this is all yours?" Jolene asked, her eyes going wide as she surveyed the laboratory.

"Technically, yes. Though I'm saving up money so I can get a private facility of my own," the Lakitu boy elaborated. He scratched his head shyly. "Uh… forgive the mess around here. I tend to just work on one thing and suddenly shift to another… My mom's been nagging at me to clean it up, but I never got around to doing it just yet."

He dropped her off near a counter, of which stood a strange, box-shaped device. He then took the Porcu-Puffer, pushed it inside an opening, and lifted a lever. A loud crackle was heard as they both watched the fish through a glass window. It was zapped continuously with electric energy for a minute or two, and from the other end of the box… an identical Porcu-Puffer came out of a conveyor belt, followed by another, and then another...

The shark girl was mystified by the remarkable feat this machine was doing. "Wow! You're not kidding! You actually made more fish!"

Luke blushed a bit. "It's not totally hard… elementary, really. This was one of my early inventions that I've shown at the science fair… I think I was 9 when I made this thing." He grabbed a cloned fish and handed it to her. He could see at first that she was apprehensive. "It's okay. It'll taste the same. If I didn't think it was safe to use for duplicating portions, I wouldn't suggest this."

With a cautious sniff, Jolene took a tender bite out of the Porcu-Puffer. When she found that nothing was wrong with it, she then resumed to gobbling the dead sea creature whole. She rubbed her belly with a smile on her face.

"Ahh… I think a couple more wouldn't hurt for my diet," she sighed. She snatched another fish from the counter and did the same thing as the previous one. While she was enjoying her snack, Luke walked to a large, tarp-covered object with broad anticipation. He pulled off the covering to reveal… a pearly white, cloud-like vehicle.

He beamed up to his friend. "Okay, Jolene… I like to present you my life's work. I'd like you to meet… the Nimbus Mark 9."

As soon as the shark girl laid sights on it, she dropped the Porcu-Puffer, her appetite was already forgotten as she stared at the marvellous machine.

It was something else, alright… the body (which was completely made of cloud) was slim and streamline, with a large number 9 stamped on the front and sides. Twin fins stuck out at the back like rudders. In the cockpit, a red leathered seat was placed neatly in front of the dashboard. There was a steering wheel that was attached in between two levers, one for each side. There were a few knobs and switches that covered the panel… but other than that, they didn't seem to indicate anything important at the moment. Even still, the Nimbus Mark 9 was a little more than your average modified Lakitu cloud.

Luke rubbed its surface of its chassis with his hand. "This baby has taken me 5 years to put together… but not once have I been able to fly it," he declared. "The number one problem I always had with it was the carburetor. If I can't be able to have an efficient working model, the engine won't be able to run properly… and this thing is grounded like a stone."

Jolene could see the sadness and slight frustration run through him. "Then why don't you switch to something else then?"

"It's not that simple. Sure, I could install a normal carburetor… but it would defeat the purpose of what I'm trying to do here. Plus, it would take another few years before I could see a possible test flight done…" He clasped a hand to his head, feeling so weary of talking about his near impossible dream. "Sigh… but I just know that if I can just get the combustion shaped just right… it'll be something the Eight Worlds have never seen before."

He looked back up to her with a meek smile. "Oh, Jolene… if I can be able to get this hunk of junk working, we could both fly anywhere. I could be able to show you so many new places you or I have probably never been to."

She returned his smile with one of her own. "That would be nice… assuming I can be able to sneak out for a few hours from my father. But even if I could…" The shark girl let out a deep depressed sigh, examining the lower-half of her body. "…I wouldn't be able to walk the land beside you. You would still be dragging me everywhere… I would still be a liability."

She flapped her tail in her somber demeanour, feeling more helpless than she ever felt in her life. "Sometimes… I wished I didn't have this… this… this thing attached to me. My father and his crew… they all have legs, so they can travel on land and sea. But for me… I'm stuck in the water no matter what. And if I stay on land too long… I'll die of dehydration."

As if on cue, she began to feel dizzy in her head, and tightly closed her eyes in hoping her pain will go away. The shark girl's breathing was turning ragged and slow, and she struggled to keep herself upright by pushing against the floor with her hands. Her friend quickly ran up to her to tend to her suffering.

"Are you alright?" the Lakitu boy worried.

"Yeah… I'm fine at the moment," she muttered. She gritted her teeth as her head throbbed. "Ohhh… looks like I'll need to use your bathtub again… before we have to head back to my father."

As he watched her shudder and gasp, Luke felt like that he needed to do something. And not just help her get moisture… but also help her live a better life than this. He couldn't bear to see her flop and struggle, being totally dependent on him for her mobility.

And then he came up with an idea… a pretty ludicrous one, and he wasn't sure of what she might say about it… but it could benefit her a whole lot.

"We can think about getting you wet later. Right now… I got a question for you… Do you trust me, Jolene?"

The shark girl reopened her eyes and looked at him. "Of course I do, Luke… You've brought me into your home while we were hiding from my father. If you have left me to die in the woods yesterday, I would have said otherwise. But why do you ask me such a serious question?"

"Well… I want to… um… I want to…," he stuttered, trying to think of how he should say this. "I have… a proposal that could… that could be something that would be to your advantage… but it's entirely up to you if you want to do this. I just want to make it clear that… even though I know a lot in biogenetics and engineering… there's no telling what might happen…"

"Shhh… it's okay. Just tell me what you want to tell me," she interjected.

There was a brief pause from both of them. He really wasn't sure if he would be doing the right thing… if he would be messing up her life instead of improving it. But his curiosity was stretching out more than his concerns.

Then the Lakitu boy finally got the courage to speak up again. "I want to ask you… if you would be willing to go through the procedure… of getting your skeletal structure adjusted, and your appendages realigned to conform to the environment around you."

Once again, his large words confused her. "I don't understand… what do you mean, Luke?"

He sighed. "Basically… what I mean is…" He paused once more. Here it goes, he thought. "…I can be able to help you… grow your very own legs, if you wish."

A heavy silence fell afterwards. It was both eerie and awkward as Jolene tried to respond… but she couldn't. She was too awestruck by his words. And even more so… she was unsure of how to reply to them.

"I… I… I don't know… what to say…," she finally answered. After a while more, she added, "Except… why would you do that for me?"

It was overwhelming enough as it was for the Lakitu boy. He wanted to say that he couldn't stand to see such a beautiful girl like her be forced to crawl on her belly, unable to experience what it's like to move freely on her own will… but he didn't have the guts to say it. Like she said before… she was much older than he was. And he could never think about falling in love with her. They were only going to stay as friends…

Friends, Luke mused. I would be willing to do this for her because she's my friend… and I want to at least help her in any way.

He slowly turned back to look at her and sighed. "I want to help you…," he mumbled. His face blushed furiously with anxiety. "So many people have came to me for my knowledge… and I've tried my best to come up with solutions to all their problems. And I don't do it for them for notoriety, wealth, or popularity… I just like to see them happy. I don't really expect for anything in return… just assurance that they can go back to their lives again in peace."

He scratched his head in embarrassment. "I guess what I'm trying to say… is that I want to return my gratitude for you being my friend… by helping to solve _your_ problem." He was unable to look eye to eye with her anymore. "You can say no if you want… I won't poke further."

It was at this point that Jolene took the time to think about it. She wasn't sure if she should go through with it. After all… even if it was a nuisance, her tail was still a part of her. It was her only means to be able to swim the long stretches of ocean around them. And with it, she was the fastest plundering pirate out of Johnny's crew…

Which brought her to another, more depressing thought. Despite her skills, she still goes unnoticed by her father. He never shown he was really proud of her efforts… it was quite the opposite. The old shark captain had constantly scolded her with, "_You could have gotten yourself killed!_", or, "_Have you ever thought of your actions before doing them?!_". And every time, he flat out refused to have her join his company. And making matters even worse… his mates would laugh and mock at her that she'll never fit in with them… no matter how hard she tried to prove them wrong. For years, that made her felt so alone…

…until she met Luke, that is. As she watched him shuffle uncomfortably in his shoes, her spirits were lifted as she thought of all the moments they had together… even if it wasn't that long ago they met. Like her, his father misunderstands him, even though he still loves him dearly. And like her, he was a 'half-breed' inside a society that would most likely shun him or pick on him for being different. He was like her in almost every way.

And unlike any of Johnny's crew (or really… any person Jolene met before), the Lakitu boy treated her with respect and kindness. Selfless… humble… honest… trustworthy… and highly attentive to what she tells him, he was pretty much the most decent friend she ever had.

With her mind made up, she decided that… even though it was a big risk, and that it would truly mean leaving her old life behind… she no longer wanted to go back to her father. She wanted to live her own life without any restraints. She wanted to wander freely wherever the wind takes her. But most of all… she wanted to continue being with Luke.

"Okay… I want to do it…"

The Lakitu boy lifted his head and gazed at her with astonishment. "You… you mean it?"

"Yes, Luke. I'm willing to go through with it," she confirmed. She sternly looked at the appendage attached to her waist. "I want you to give me legs."

"Are… are you sure?" he stammered. "This is not an easy procedure, Jolene… and a ton of things can go wrong. And once I start the bio-reengineering process… it'll be irreversible. There'll be no going back."

"It's fine with me. I don't plan on going back…" She exhaled softly as her dehydration was threatening to make her black out again. "…and I don't plan to return to my father either."

"What?! B-But how come?! I thought you wanted to…," Luke started. But he didn't get to finish his sentence. At that moment, the shark girl's arms buckled and she collapsed in exhaustion.

He sprinted up to her, quickly pulling out his Humidi-sorber from his pocket, sucked up a little bit of moisture from the air, and started spraying everywhere. He frantically made sure that she got every last drop from the canister. And in no time at all, she snapped back into consciousness.

Lying on her back, Jolene looked up at his face with woozy eyes. She raised a feeble arm as she reached out for him. "Ohhh… I'm so thirsty…," she rasped. Every breath she took was a dry wheeze. "Please… please do this for me, Luke… please…"

The Lakitu boy held onto her hand tightly. "Don't worry. I will… but let's get you to some water first."

/

"Darn it… where on Star Road is that boy?"

Lando had been waiting for his son to arrive at the docks for a while. And so far, he hadn't seen hide nor hair of the Lakitu boy. The fisherman of a father had even told him at least three times to come around 10:30am, let alone the note he left on the kitchen table _and_ the special message that he taught Han to perform.

The old human checked his pocket watch, seeing that the time was nearly 11. He stuffed the watch back in his coat and sighed. He didn't ask much from his son… all he want was for Luke to spend some quality time with him. And it seems his boy had broken his promise…

"You ready to be taking off, McCloud?" asked a gruff-looking Lakitu, as he got on board of the boat Lando was in.

"Sigh… yeah, Flint. Let's get the anchor lifted and we're off," he muttered passively. While he pulled up the heavy weight from the water, Flint ignited a match and lit the chamber of an old smoke pipe.

"Your own flesh and blood said he'd be here. Looks like he's hoodwinked you for something better to do." He puffed into his smoke pipe solemnly. "I send my deepest apologies, Lando. You're an outstanding father… and he simply didn't seem interested in our lifestyle one bit. I'm sure you did your best either way."

"Doesn't matter…" The foggy atmosphere did little to lighten up Lando's mood, nor did the salty sea air or calming waters. "He's a young Lakitu that's growing up… and he doesn't need his father holding him back. I should just get out of his business, while I do mine…" He fought back the tear that was trying to leak out of his eye.

"Huh… that's rather odd. I thought they were supposed to shoot the fireworks later this eve," Flint remarked, while perking his ears to the distant rumble ahead of them.

The old human looked at his fishing partner with confusion. "Have you gone tone deaf, dear man? Who would have the Fourth of July at this time of day?" He too listened carefully to the strange sound that got progressively louder and louder. "And it doesn't sound like any firework to me. It's more closer to cannons firing…"

As they looked to the bow of their boat, they could make out the outline of a large vessel heading to shore. It looked a bit foreboding to passers-by… and it definitely wasn't a local ship either. Pulling out a telescope from his cloud, Flint checked out the oncoming mass heading their way. He suddenly became wide-eyed and fearful after a few seconds of examination.

"Galloping Goombas… that can't be right…"

"What is it? What's wrong?" Lando questioned. He took the telescope out of his partner's grasp and took a look for himself. And just like the Lakitu beside him, his expression went very grim. "I don't believe it. It's… it's… it's _him_!"

The fog began to clear up as the ship of Jonathan Jones came into view. People started to scream and run for their lives upon glancing at the shark pirate's mighty boat, while his crew fired round after round of cannonballs towards the crowd. The vessel came to a halt on the side of the dock, just skimming the wooden walkway by a centimeter. A plank was placed like a bridge connecting to the mainland… and walking on it was none other than Johnny himself.

The old captain was glaring heavily at the masses before him, attempting to look intimidating as possible… but it was more so for the fact that his daughter was presumably kidnapped.

"Alright, ye landlubbers!" he rumbled, thumping his trident loudly. He squinted his yellow eyes on each and every one of the local citizens. "I have a large Dry Bone to pick with all of you! I normally don't start sabotages like this out of the blue, lest pick on a fight with air-suckers… but it be seeming to me that something… no… some_one_ I cherish very dearly has been taken from me. And if you value the hides on your backs…"

He suddenly threw his spear-like weapon towards a Lakitu, who was trying to escape. It narrowly missed their skin… just piercing the robes by the tips, preventing them from going anywhere. The angry shark watched them squirm with disdain as he continued his speech. "As I was saying… if you value the hides on your backs, you be returning of what I long for. And if you deny that you're keeping her here… I swear by the Star Spirits above, that I be overturning your entire village until I have her back in me arms! And I'll be doing so with brute force if that is what it shall take!"

Johnny then spotted both Lando and Flint on their small dingy, and marched up to them (after retrieving his trident implanted on the poor victim he entrapped with) until he was standing on their boat. Comparing between all three men, it was like introducing a wild tiger to a small cat and his mouse.

"You know… you be looking mightily similar for some reason…," the pirate captain growled, as he squinted over the middle-aged human. He pulled out a photograph from his cape and looked at it for a few seconds. After much examination, he stared back at him with cold eyes and grabbed him by the scruff of his collar. "Mind if you be telling me where you are keeping my Jolene, you dirty ape?"

Lando struggled to breathe as he was choked on by the shark's crushing grip. "Ugh… I… don't know… what you mean, Mr. Jonathan… ugh… Who or what is this Jolene?" he gasped. He clutched his throat as Johnny tightened his hold on him.

"Don't be trying to pull a fast one on me! You hear?! Although my sources are limited, my scouts have managed to get a picture of the perpetrator who stole my only daughter. And you fit the bill very well here!" He thrust the photo into Lando's face.

As he looked at the image, he became very surprised to recognize the person who was pulling some large mammal-like creature. His grayish eyes went wide.

"L-Luke? What on Earth… what are you doing with a picture of my son?"

The shark pirate's expression tensed up with befuddlement, snatched back the photograph, and took another look. This time around, he was now unsure if he had the right man... but he wasn't going to show it or apologize. Instead, he barked up to his crew. "Jack! Avery! Get over here and search this human from top to bottom!"

Both Bandana Reds came running to assist their leader and, with no hesitation, they begun rooting through every pocket and fold on Lando. They even took off his pants and searched through his wallet.

"Hehehe… check this out, Avery. This guy's got a little picture of his whole family here!" Jack cackled, as he pulled out the object in question from the wallet. His buddy laughed when he saw it too.

"Aww… what a pwetty wittle scene," he mocked. He sneered at his victim. "Ya carry this all the time, old man?"

They were swiftly slapped on the head by Johnny, who also snatched the photo from Jack's hand. "No goofing off, you hear me?! I still haven't forgave the lot of you for tricking my daughter… not to mention for you also stealing one of our potato bags and ketchup, and mangling it while taking a snapshot for your amusement!"

Jack grunted while rubbing his skull. "Really… it was all Avery's fault for making that phoney picture of you, boss… OWW!"

"I don't care who did what! You're all responsible!" the shark captain thundered, as she painfully squeezed his cadet's snout. Johnny then examined the family photo, and started comparing it to the other picture he had. Once again, after much evaluation… he looked back at Lando. This time, he had a menacing grin on his mug.

"So… _your_ child has taken _my_ child for ransom, eh? I see the big picture now…" He placed a firm grip on the old human's shoulders and gave his most dangerous look yet. "Well… two can play at that game!"

With little effort, he yanked Lando off his feet and carried him in his arm in a hostage style. Flint tried to fight back… but he was simply grabbed from midair by the deranged shark, and flung straight into the water with one throw. He let out a hearty laugh.

"Hahaha! Come now, me men! Back to the ship!" he roared, and all of the Bandana Reds and Blues scrambled back on board the vessel. "We await for the young one called Luke to bring back my Jolene! And if he fails… his guardian will walk the plank to be fed to the briny deep!"

/

The Lakitu boy, in the meanwhile, was preparing to do the medical procedure that will transform his shark friend's aquatic appendage into a functional bipedal system.

He was strapping down her arms and stomach, just so that things don't get out of hand when she thrashes around, and did an MRI scan on her tail. He also stuck needles into her skin, so that she would get a constant stream of water flowing into her and prevent dehydration. Because as far as he could tell… this task could take hours to do.

All the while, he couldn't help but admit that he was a little nervous of the biogenetic process. He really didn't want to hurt Jolene in any way… but he knew that this was going to hurt very much, as soon as he starts rearranging and reforming her body.

The shark girl was watching him sweat a bit as he worked. And she felt that she needed to calm him before he became an emotional wreck.

"It's okay, Luke. I won't hold anything against you, even if it all goes wrong…," she spoke soothingly.

"I know that… but I still want to warn you, though…," he said warily. "It won't be pleasant at all."

"How unpleasant are we talking about?"

He squirmed a bit before answering with a gulp. "Umm… it would be even worse than labour pains, without a doubt. I'm basically trying to shift all your molecules at once without them scattering into infinite space. So you'll be experiencing some shrieking and violent spasms very soon."

After much thought of what she'll be expecting, she gave a small shrug. "I think I'll still manage it, Luke," she answered. "I've had my fair share of pain many times… both physical and emotional."

"Sigh… it's not like it's a trip to the clinic or anything," he spoke in a bit of exasperation, while shaking his head. "I mean that _this_ pain is the kind that's going to be excruciating… mind-warping… and going past the boundaries that any living creature, both human or Mushroom Kingdom descent, can tolerate. Heck… I don't even know if you'll make it out alive! That's why I'm so worried to do this!"

"Shhh… just don't think too much about, okay?" She lifted up her tail to gently caress his back. "I trust you completely…"

"In what? Costing your life? I don't want to become a murderer, Jolene!"

"You won't become a murderer of anything, Luke," the shark girl reassured him. "Just listen to me… you're a great genius, and an even greater friend. It matters not if I don't survive this, just as long as you give it your all." She ushered him to come closer by tilting her head, and he did so. "If you pray deeply in your heart to the Stars above us that I'll make it through… you'll have nothing to worry about. Worrying will only make bring the worst of a situation…"

Luke was unable to hold back the tears that were dropping from his face. "I don't want you to die…"

"I won't… just keep it together now. And if you can, it would do me very well."

And that's when she craned her neck to inch closer to his face… and planted a meaningful kiss on his lips. Luke became electrified… simply standing there as she made her moment of passion with him for just a brief second before letting go. She smiled at him while he continued to show shock, unable to stop touching his mouth. After 5 minutes of flabbergasting, the Lakitu boy shook himself back to reality and walked dazedly to the control panel he would be working at.

My first kiss, he thought, as his heart raced. I've got my first kiss on the lips from her…

A broad smile appeared on his blushing mug, as he finally stood in place of his work station. All his concerns were washed away from him… and like she instructed him, he made a silent wish that Jolene will be okay.

Now… it was time to work towards his solution.

Luke began downloading and pulling up files on his operating computer. The files would be the primary schematics for providing the bio-reengineering machine all the things that would be needed to form Jolene's legs. He skimmed through many designs, deciding on which would be a good candidate to use. If his shark friend is going to live on land, he also still wanted her to be able to swim just as well as she did with her tail… if not, even better.

Eventually, after looking through countless models, he found the prime pair that would suit her perfectly. The only flaw was that it would make her lose 8 inches of her original height. But other than that, they would propel her at twice the speed she currently can do.

After selecting his choice, he then went on to implementing the schematic onto the program. Steady whirs hummed as he waited for the system to load all the commands to the machine. Now that the easy part was done, it was time to raise the difficulty a wee bit.

Luke flipped on many switches, all which would be vital to make the transmogrification go as smoothly as possible. He glanced back at Jolene, who hadn't moved at all since he had started, and called out to notify her something.

"I'm going to reshape your skin first! So expect some stinging for the moment! And whatever you do… don't fidget too much!"

She nodded to him to confirm that she got the message. And so he returned back to the control panel to check the loading progress of the schematic being fed to the bio-reengineering device, which shown that it was complete. Wiping the sweat off his brow, the Lakitu boy jabbed on a flashing green button to begin Stage 1.

The shark girl cringed as she felt electric energy pulsate below her waist. It wasn't excruciating… but it was a bit unbearable, even for her. But she didn't let it bother her, as she concentrated on the face of her friend, who was behind a sheet of protective glass for safety reasons. Her loins were feeling strange, becoming very numb… and it wasn't long before she realized she no longer had any function on her lower-half.

And that's when she saw the changes. Right down the middle of her tail, her skin started to break up into two parts. One for the left of her body, and one for the right. It first moved down at the base, separating the halves that made up her thighs. Next was knee caps… but at this point, she couldn't tell they were there, because there was no bone in its place… just muscle and cartilage. Then came the shins… then the ankles… and finally the heels. Her tailfins had became blobs of tissue at the end… like a long lump of clay for each leg.

The machine stopped zapping her with electricity, and Jolene was able to now gaze astonishingly at what had became of her tail. It was like puberty all over again… everything past her waist was unrecognizable. It was like looking at a pair of empty nylon stockings.

"Sweet Mother of Cheep-Cheeps! They look like two strings of seaweed strapped together!" she cried out.

"That's because I haven't added bones yet!" Luke shouted. "Lay back down and try to stay still if you can! This next part is _definitely_ going to hurt!" He saw the next flashing button that was ready to be initiated (this one was blinking yellow). He pressed down on it for Stage 2… and the machine buzzed back to life.

Electricity surged into Jolene once again, but this time… it was way more tense than the previous stage. She tried very hard not think about the pain, but she couldn't hold it in after the first 5 seconds. A loud, unearthly scream rattled out from her lungs as each new bone grew to fill out her misshaped appendages. Long streaks of tears were leaking out as she howled like a banshee.

"Gaaaahhhhhh! Ahhh… ahhh… ahhhhhh! Ohhhhhhh!"

To hear every sound of her being tortured to no end was gut-wrenching enough for Luke. It took a lot of effort not to leave his post and comfort her. If he left the systems unchecked, it could go critical… and she would be stuck in limbo, as neither land nor sea creature.

"Everything's going to be okay, Jolene… everything's going to be okay." He muttered these words over and over, not just for her sake… but to ease him as well.

He checked her vitals to see how she is doing. Her heartbeat was thrumming at 150 per minute… which was a little fast for human standards after a long jog, but otherwise not life-threatening. And he saw that over 70% of her bone mass had been constructed. So far so good, he mused encouragingly.

But he forgotten the most important rule of Murphy's Law, even though he wasn't much of a believer in that sort of thing… that anything that can go wrong, will go wrong. A loud buzzing sound rang in his ears, and he quickly clattered on the keyboard to find out what the problem was. A line of text flashed on the screen before him.

"'Abnormal bone density structure. Increase dosage to prevent osteoporosis.'," he spoke, as he read each word carefully. "Uh oh… that does not bode well…" He poked his head from his station and called out to Jolene again, shouting as loud as he could over the wailing of her voice. "Jolene! I reached a snag! I'm going to need to make your bones stronger before I move onto Stage 3!"

"Yeeaaaggghhh! I don't care! Just do what you need to do, Luke!" she hollered through clenched teeth. "And just end it as soon as you can! Guhhhhhhh!"

Frantically, the Lakitu boy went back to his controls and cranked on a knob to up the dosage. The computer screen showed the percentage of how much he added. He had to be careful with this… if he makes her bones too weak, they won't be able to even allow her to stand on both feet. And if he made them too strong, they would slow her down… or worse, they would fuse together and constrict her movement.

Little by little, he filled more and more of her bone density by cranking the knob slowly. And it caused her to scream even louder with pain. He once again chanted his little prayer to make him relax. And when he saw the message vanish, he let of the controls. At last, the screen showed that her bones were 100% formed.

Whew… that was a close one, he thought. He watched as the shark girl going limp on the table, breathing heavily and with her eyes closed. She looked so relieved that her agony was over. But there was still one more bite at the Bullet Bill to go.

"Alright, this is the last stage, Jolene! You're going to have to take this once more… and its all done! All I need to do now is toughen up your cartilages and body tissue!" A third blinking button, glowing a vivid red, was now ready to begin Stage 3. He was almost done… no turning back. Breathing in sharply, he slammed on it with his palm… and the machine did the rest.

And heard her shriek again… sounding more intense and heart-wrenching than ever. She yanked up hard from her straps as she arched her back. She could feel every muscle within her legs constricting and searing with white-hot stabs of pain, while they attempt to properly cover around her newly-shaped bones. It was simply too much for her. She just wanted it to end, but it was not ending quick enough. And all the while, she pulled harder and harder on her bonds to try escape this torture.

With as much strength as she could muster, Jolene managed to free her right hand and tried undoing the other. Seeing what she was doing, Luke got out of his seat to abandon his work station, and ran up to her to place down her arm firmly on the table.

"No! Don't move!" he stammered, as he pushed with all his might to keep her from getting out of his grasp. "You'll screw up the system, and then you'll never be able to walk! I promise you, it's almost over!"

"GAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" She let out a piercing roar at the top of her lungs, clenching her eyelids so tightly... she thought they might rip open at any moment. The shark girl was sobbing her heart out as she tried to look at him. "It… hurts so much! Please… make it stop!"

"It'll stop very, very soon! You just need to take it for a minute or so! Don't quit out on me!"

"I… I don't know how much I can take, Luke! YEEEEAAAAGGGGHHHH! I didn't realize… it was going to be this bad! Please… OHHHHHHHHHHH! …make it go away! Make it go away!" she choked.

The Lakitu boy could tell that words alone weren't going to preserve her sanity. And she wasn't even halfway done with the stage. So he did the only thing that seemed right… by holding onto her free hand. Jolene could feel his touch within her palm, and struggled to open her green, tear-streaked eyes to stare at her friend.

"I'm here for you. You'll be okay," he mumbled.

Even though she was in extraordinary amounts of agony, she couldn't help but smile at his concern and affection… and she wrapped her fingers around his small hand. When the pain got too much, she squeezed hard on it to alleviate her discomfort. And when she felt like pulling out, he gently pushed down on her chest. Luke never left her side the whole time…

Once again, another buzzing sound blared as sparks began to fly from the bio-reengineering machine. The Lakitu boy gasped with horror.

"It's overloading! I got to shut it down before it goes critical! Just stay strong for me, Jolene! I'll be back in a minute!"

He ran to the other side of the room to find the cut-off switch. There was no time to power off the device manually from his computer… and every minute he wastes is more likely that irreversible damage is occurring to her legs.

"Dang it! Where did I keep you? I _really_ need to be more organized in my designs!" he cursed loudly. "Ah! There you are!" He located the emergency shut-down lever and thrust it down. And immediately, the whole room went dark… save for the light that shone from the windows near the ceiling.

Things were silent for a long while. From his limited vision, Luke could see the dim outline of Jolene lying flat on the table. She wasn't moving… just breathing roughly like some monstrous creature. Her blue skin was covered with a layer of sweat, all from the exhaustion and distress she emitted. Her head and torso was all he could see at the moment…

He nervously inched closer to her. "J-Jolene? A-are you okay? Say s-something…"

The Lakitu boy got the shock of his life when she suddenly jolted up to a sitting position, easily ripping off the other strap on her left hand and the one attached to her stomach. She took the moment to catch her breath as she grunted unnaturally, yanking off all the needles sticking out of her skin. Then… she twisted her body around so that her shadowed, unseen legs dangled on the edge of the table. He could see the slight green glow of her eyes as she faced him. Luke never felt so terrified like he was right now.

Ever so slowly, the shark girl rested one sluggish, heavy foot to the floor… and then the other. There was the sound of cracking as she stood up and stretched her back. She put a hand to her forehead as she shuffled clumsily towards her friend… evidently taking her first steps on land. The Lakitu boy didn't know what to do at the moment. It was like his own legs were paralyzed to the ground. And all he could do was watch her coming nearer and nearer to him. After what seemed like eternity, Jolene was just a space apart from the young teen when she stopped moving.

"Did… did it work?" she asked, her tone shivering just slightly.

He gathered up his wits and replied in a higher pitch than he normally did. "You tell me… you just got over here without me to pull you…"

"I mean… how do I look? Is it how I'm supposed to be like?"

Luke examined her brand-new appendages, starting at the very bottom. He could see that, unlike normal human feet, her heels ended with a pair of elongated, flexible, toeless flippers. He had thought of the idea that these would provide her extra thrust while in the ocean, while still be able to walk normally on dry land. Then he moved up to her calves and thighs… which actually surprised him.

"Oops… I think I may have added a little too much muscle mass here," he laughed a bit. When she raised an eyebrow, he elaborated with a more serious manner. "Well, it doesn't really mean anything bad. You'll be able to lift heavier objects now… though I wanted to have them slimmer so it won't slow you down." He looked away from her for some reason after checking close to her pelvis. "Umm…"

"What is it? You found some wrong?" she wondered.

"No, no! Nothing is wrong! It's just that… uhh…" He blushed beet-red while trying to make eye contact with her. "Your… umm… your _unmentionables_ are exposed…"

Jolene was confused. "Unmentionables? What are you talking abo… oh…" She peered down to where her loins were. "Huh… I never noticed these before. They look weird… Do all land people have these?"

"Um, well… _some_ of us do, anyway… so you're not far off," Luke mumbled in embarrassment. "But I think you need to get dressed before we even _think_ about going outside."

"Okay then…," she responded, raising both eyebrows now. "But I there's one thing that's bothering me a bit. I know it sounds strange, but… have you somehow gotten bigger? You're level with my belly…"

Another blush tingled his skin. "Oh yeah… that was a bit beyond my control. You see… the schematic for your legs was only designed for a human, at least in the maximum, that's 6 feet and 8 inches. I couldn't been able to scale it more, or rather… I could find an exact estimate for your physique. So I had to go with this one." He made a sheepish grin while looking up at her. "Even still… you tower over me by more than a couple of feet."

It didn't take long for her to smile. "Hahaha… well, I guess losing some height is the price to pay to be able to walk on land. And maybe then… I'll fit in your bathtub more easily." Jolene bent down, so that she was looking evenly at his face and not above him, and wrapped her arms around him for a loving hug. "Thank you so much for doing this for me, Luke… I'm in your debt forever."

"Hehe… not a problem, Jolene," he said shyly.

They both broke up their tender moment when Han, who just came in after 'doing his business' outside, ran up to them and barked like crazy. He seemed really antsy about something… and he kept making weird gestures in front of his owner.

But Luke couldn't make heads or tails on what he was trying to tell him. "What is it, boy? You need me to refill your food?" To his surprise, the Spiny shook his head.

"What's the matter with him?" the shark girl wondered.

"I don't know… but something is riling him up. Do you want me to play fetch with you, buddy?" he asked his pet. Again, Han gestured with a no. "Do you want to be let out for a walk?" Another shake and decline. "Did you see any burglars come into the house?"

The Spiny growled in frustration and ran out of the lab for a little while. When he came back, he was carrying a picture frame in his mouth. And the Lakitu boy examined it for one second before he realized what his pet was hinting.

"Han, why did you grab a photo of Dad? You got slobber all over… gasp! Of course, I forgot!" He slapped his forehead. "I was supposed to meet up with him at the Fishing Derby! He's going to wonder where I was all this time!" But that apparent wasn't the end of what Han wanted to show. He also tugged at his master's pant leg to the lab's exit. "Now what, boy?"

Even though she didn't speak Spiny, Jolene had a guess of what he was doing. "I think he wants us to follow him, Luke." The spiky creature ran out of the room again, only appearing at the doorstep for the pair to come hither.

"Okay… but I swear… if he's made another 'accident' on the living room rug, Mom is going to go ballistic."

/

(End of Part 3)


	4. Chapter 4: Tension In the High Seas

A Sharkmaid's Tale

By: Virtualboy2558

/

Disclaimer: Super Mario RPG is Copyrights of Nintendo, Square, and Shigeru Miyamoto. I do not own, nor profit, from any or all of the characters mentioned.

/

Rusty was a little frightened for his life… though it was pretty much the fact that he never had much courage to begin with. He was never the strongest or the fastest plunderer in Johnny's crew, which was why he worked in technical support for his benefit. Plus, it was more safer that way.

However, there was a reason why the Bandana Blue was extra fearful today. Because his captain had ordered him to tie up their newest hostage so that he could not escape. And Rusty hoped he does not screw this up… or he would be facing the plank quicker than you can say 'scallywag'.

The only trouble was, the shark sailor was a miniscule 4 feet and 7 inches… and his prisoner measured nearly 6 feet in height. But that would be because his prisoner was a human.

"Hey, um… can you loosen this up a little bit, please? These ropes are cutting off my bloodstream," Lando requested politely.

"Uhh… uh… n-no! I'm not supposed to listen to you… uh… air breather!" Rusty yelled somewhat pathetically. "My orders are to k-keep you prisoner until the boy delivers what my c-captain is searching for! So don't try any… uh… funny business around me! Or you'll be facing d-dangerous waters in a heartbeat!"

However, the small shark's threats were only empty ones… since he didn't have that angry and cutthroat attitude the rest of the crew had. His own mom made him too soft-hearted for that. But even so, he won't let the human manipulate him in any shape or form.

Lando didn't quite fall for the Bandana Blue's seemingly 'tough' exterior. And so he tried opening a casual conversation with him.

"So… umm… nice day for a swim, it seems. The tide is warm and shallow, and with no visible signs of rainfall either… perfect conditions for scuba-diving. I don't do much swimming, though… what with my bad leg and all. But I'm sure you sharks like to take a dip every now and then, right?"

There was no response from Rusty. He was currently looking through a porthole, seeing his shipmates surveying the area for any sight of suspicious activity. Naturally, the citizens in the Kumo Reef harbour were too scared to move an inch, fearing that they'll be torn apart by these savage sharks of the sea.

Sigh… this is totally nuts, he thought. We don't even know if he'll show up to bring her back. Land creatures can be hard to trust at all. But it's not like we have a clean record either. I wonder who would be the bigger monster out of all this? Us or them?

"Sigh… oh… where are you Jolene?" the nervous shark moped.

"Who exactly is this Jolene again?" Lando wondered, hearing his words. "I keep asking that over and over again, but no one wants to tell me."

The Bandana Blue groaned heavily. "Ugh… you don't know when to keep your yap quiet, you… uh… you dirty human! Do I have to resort to using the duct tape?"

"It's just a simple, honest question that I want to know. I don't know why it's so hard to get a straight answer. If you tell me, I promise to not say another word," the old man offered.

The irritation from his hostage was getting to the point of where he wanted to clobber the fisherman's head with his tail. But again… he wasn't _that_ cruel or mindless. So he opted to at least give the prisoner what he wanted to hear. "Grr… fine. I'll elaborate the situation to you," Rusty replied in a gruff tone, but his nasally voice ruined the effect. He was about to speak… then suddenly remembered what his boss told him.

"_And you must never repeat this to anyone, am I clear? If I get wind that you spill this secret to the others… you shall find yourself the main course for King Calamari's dinner._"

Oh, geez… I can't let this guy know that she's the captain's daughter, he worried. He'll hang my head up upon his trident for sure! But… this is just a human, though. He's not part of the crew, so he can't spill it to anyone. Hmm… still not sure if I should… oh… come on, Russell Taylor Jr.! Man up if you ever going to be of use to anyone! The human is going to drown anyway, even if the boy comes back with her! So he might as well be keeping this secret to his watery grave! Yikes… is that what I sound like when I'm confident?

"Sigh… as you must know, Jolene is my master's only child… not that it should matter to you at all. And if your boy fails to bring her back before sunset, my gang will be dangling you like a worm over the Forbidden Waters, where… gulp… King Calamari is resting." The thought of the giant Blooper-like squid made him shiver.

The geeky shark walked away from Lando to calm down. Thinking about undersea monsters eating whole victims alive wasn't a good way to maintain assertiveness. It also make his face turn a sickly green.

It was a while before the old fisherman spoke again, since he wanted to keep his word of not talking again. But after 10 minutes of seeing Rusty's queasiness, he reconsidered for only a moment.

"Do you need a sea-sickness tablet? I got some in my front pocket, if you ever need relief."

The Bandana Blue was going to reject at first… but figure what he would have to lose. Even he was doubting his 'tough guy' performance was satisfactory enough to convince anyone. So he went back to the old human and dug into the ropes to reach the pills in his shirt. He found the bottle, opened it up, and popped a few into his mouth.

"Urg… thanks," he mumbled, before swallowing the tablets. "Ironic… that I'm the only shark who doesn't like to travel in the water. That's evolution for you…"

"You can take the whole bottle if you want," Lando said. "I've got more back at home… if I ever return home, that is. Sigh…" There was a heavy moment of regret on his face. This change of behaviour interested Rusty, even though he was supposed to be focused of the task at hand.

"What's bothering you?"

The old human exhaled deeply from his nose, not wanting to eye his prison guard. "A lot of things… particularly my son. He broke a promise I thought he would keep."

Guess I'm not the only one to betray somebody, the nerdy shark mused. "Well… as my dad once told me, promises were made to be broken," he stated. "He never had time to play with me when I was a goby. He promised every day that he'll make some time for me, but was too wrapped up in his work."

"Oh… I see," Lando remarked. "What sort of profession did he do? Is he also a pirate?"

"No, believe it or not… he actually worked as a fisherman. Funny…" Rusty eyed the human before him, examining his attire and somewhat scruffy appearance. "… you seem to fit the bill of what he usually looked like. Did you happen to know a Russell Taylor Sr.?"

"Not to my knowledge… I don't meet many sharks in my travels."

"Oh… okay. Was hoping a little you knew about him," the pirate shark muttered glumly. A bit of guilt was eating away at his conscience. "Um… I'm sorry if I sounded a little brash earlier. I was only trying to do my job right."

"No offense taken grudgingly," the old fisherman spoke calmly.

They both went silent for a few minutes, unsure of what to say… but figure it was for the best for now. Rusty walked back to the porthole to gaze at the commotion outside. He could see two Bandana Reds tossing a purse belonging to a poor female Lakitu. They both cackled while she tried desperately to get her personal materials back. Further from the scene, he could see Avery and his buddies befouling and littering a bait store. Every inch of the ground around the building was covered in worms and night crawlers, while the shark gang laughed like hyenas.

The bespectacled Bandana Blue shook his head in disgust. "Sigh… why must these land people put up with this barbaric and childish display of cruelty? The sooner Jolene comes back to us, the sooner we can return to our more civilized manner… or what's left of it."

/

"Whoa! Hold on, Han! I only have two feet!"

Luke was closely following his pet Spiny within the house, totally clueless on the strange behaviour he was acting upon. Not too far away was Jolene, who was carefully moving across the halls to catch up with them both. She would stumble a little on the floor every now and then… and pushed her body against the wall for support. With her brand-new legs, she wasn't quite used to walking on land just yet, But it was an enormous relief to finally gain her own mobility.

He could see the struggle that she was exerting on herself. "Are you okay?" he asked.

"Yeah… I'm fine. Just fine," she replied, looking up at him and grinning for some reason, flashing her sharp teeth. "I just… find all of this so new and exciting for me. Like learning how to swim for the first time… all over again."

The Lakitu boy nodded. "I know what that's like. I still remember when I rode my first bike… and it's true what they say. You never forget once you learn it… those nasty cuts and bruises hurt like heck when I rode down that hill, and I didn't know how to brake. I still have one of the lacerations on my left shin." He removed his pant leg to indicate the injury.

"Pshhh… that's nothing. You should have seen me one time when I was swarmed with Cheep Cheeps! They may seem harmless… but their skin isn't exactly like feeling a sea sponge." The shark girl pulled up her hair so he can see the back of her neck. There were patches of heavily scratched skin on each shoulder blade, with a few scars that speckled here and there. "I put on some healing cream there every day… but my father says it'll be a number of years before they'll vanish completely."

All of a sudden, Luke felt a tug on his shoe… and can see his Spiny was biting the tip of his right sneaker, urging him forward with impatience. Like he was wondering what was taking his master so long.

"Okay, okay! I'm coming! Hold your Yoshis, will you?" the Lakitu boy bleated.

Han then scrambled towards a closet door, just near where the front entrance was. He clawed with his tiny paws against the woodwork, at least until his owner pushed him away so he wouldn't do permanent damage. After Luke opened up the door, the Spiny ran inside the assortment of coats and footwear with no hesitation. It only took a minute before the little spiky creature returned… and with one of Luke's extra jackets in his mouth.

"Is that all you wanted to show me? I don't need another one of those, Han. It's too warm for double layers."

But apparently his pet wasn't really finished with showing him what needs to be shown. Han nudged his nose upon one of the pockets of the jacket, indicating a bulge in the fabric. There was something of interest inside it. So the Lakitu boy opened the zipper and pulled the mysterious object out.

Jolene stood next to her friend to examine it in detail. "What is that thing?" she wondered.

"My own text messaging machine," Luke explained, bewilderment crossing his face while checking out the compact device. "It's a prototype I've build for me and my family in case they need to send messages to me or each other… and… it says that I've got a message from dad." His expression deepened with more confusion. "But… that can't be right. My dad never uses my text machine. He always prefers normal telephone. Unless…" He clicked on the message to see what it said. Together, he and the shark girl read word for word.

"'_Dear son… I don't know where you ran off to, or what is it that made you change your mind about coming to the Derby… but none of that matters now. I don't want to scare you in any shape or form, but certain events have taken place that has caused me to be in a dire situation. I don't have a lot of time to send you this, since they might catch me in any minute, but I wasn't going to let this stop me from letting you know something instead of nothing of the peril I'm in._

"'_First thing though… I want you to know I love you very much. I know I don't say it often… but I just want to say that to you before it's too late. And tell your mom and your sister that they also mean the world to me._

"'_Second… if anything should happen, then that means you're the man of the house now. Again, I want you to understand I never want to try and scare you. You're growing up to be a young adult… and there's nothing I can do to change that. But I know one day, you'll be doing your family proud… and I am proud of who you are._

""_And lastly, I now know that you're with someone. I'm not sure why… I'm not sure what she's like, or if she can easily hurt you… but you must know that her father is searching for her. You must go with her to where I am, before the very last rays of sunset disappear. You must find me before they…'"_

"That's… that's all there is? Why did he cut off like that?" Luke's head was swimming with many questions on what this all meant as he tried processing it in his mind. "You don't suppose that he's in… Jolene? Jolene, what's the matter?"

The shark girl stood agape after reading the last bits of the message. Total fear was etched onto her demeanour. Her pupils were literally as small as grains of sand.

"Oh no… it can't be," she muttered.

"Can't be what? I don't understand," he asked. "And another thing… how the heck does he know about you, Jolene?" He hasn't even seen you yet!" It was at this point that the Lakitu boy saw her straighten her back and passed by him, heading for the front door. "Wait! Where are you going?"

She gently pushed a hand to his chest, while speaking with a very serious tone. "Don't follow me, Luke. I have to go alone… I have to fix this."

"But why? What can't I help you?"

"Because… he's got your father… my _own _dad has your father captive," she elaborated, staring at him with a steely look of determination. "If you go with me, he'll tear you limb from limb. Trust me… I've seen how he is when he's mad. And I don't want to put you in danger."

"But you're talking about my dad, though!" Luke shouted, realizing what she meant and tried to get past her. "I have to save him!"

"_No! Don't come with me!_" Once again, she pushed him back… a little harder this time, which knocked him to the floor… and her eyes glowed with a flash of brief anger. Han quickly ran to his owner, feeling scared and concerned for him. It took a minute or two before Jolene snapped out of her trance and felt a pang of regret for her irrational action. "No… please stay here, Luke. I'm sorry… but I can't let you get hurt by my father. If that ever happened, I'll never forgive myself. It's okay… I can handle this by myself."

And with that said, she opened the door to head outside… and stumble onto the hard concrete after making only two steps. The Lakitu boy ran up to her to help her back on her feet. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just a little wobbly…," she said, gritting her teeth a bit from pain. "I just need to get used to this first."

Luke shook his head in pity. "Look… you obviously can't be able to get to your father in this condition," he stated. "Your legs are still weak from the procedure, so walking is out of the equation, let alone running or anything. You also need to be near a water source, since it's a long way to the harbour. Not to mention the fact that everyone will freak out of seeing a 7 foot tall shark person roaming the streets…"

"Okay, okay… I get your point. So I still depend on you for a while longer." Jolene rolled her green eyes while saying this. "But still… my father is a dangerous man, Luke. Even if I was there to protect you, he can easily separate me with his crew and gut you open like a Blooper."

The tension was quite tough for the Lakitu boy. "I know, I know… but I also don't want you hurting yourself, too. What if…" He tried coming up with a simple plan. "…what if I were to stay behind in hiding… just before we meet up with him? Would that be okay for you?"

A worried look was on the shark girl's face. "I'm not sure about this…," she started warily.

"It'll be okay," he assured her. "Besides… we're in this mess together. So we have to work together. I won't give up on my friend…" He made a meek smile afterwards. "…especially my _only_ friend."

It took a long time for Jolene to negotiate with herself and come up with a decided answer. She didn't wanted to complicate things… especially having to endanger Luke's life. A ton of worst case scenarios could happen if Johnny's crew were to capture him. But even so… he wanted to come because his father was in peril. And she already knew what it was like to lose a beloved parent… one who was gone from her life for the past 20 years or so…

She clasped a hand to her head. "Sigh… alright. You've talked me into it. But remember this… when I'll ask you to hide, you do so. And when I'll ask you to wait for me, you wait until I call you again. You got it?"

The Lakitu boy nodded with a straight face. "Of course. Sounds simple enough."

"Golly… sometimes I wonder if you're too smart for your own good," she muttered in a exasperated voice, but giving out a sincere smile. "Alright, Luke… we should get going then." She was about to take a step forward before he held onto her arm for a second. She looked at him with confusion. "What are you doing?"

"We can't be able to walk all the way down the harbour, remember?" he reminded her. "It's at least a mile away, assuming we cut through houses and such to save time and distance… and I don't think that's going to happen. We need something faster for travel." Luke contemplated in his mind for a quick moment before snapping his fingers in realization. "Ah, got it! Wait right here!"

He ran back into the house for a few minutes, having Jolene and Han waiting around and wondering why he gone off in such a hurry. She was about to go inside to follow him… when she heard a loud whirring noise and saw the garage door opening up. The sound of an engine was heard before the Lakitu boy returned, operating an old beaten up station wagon.

He popped out his head, smiling at her bewildered expression. "Hop in! This should get us to the docks in no time!"

Slowly, the shark girl opened a car door and wedged herself into the back seat. Despite losing some height after her operation, she found the vehicle too compact for her liking. Her bent knees were practically close to hitting her chin. "Ugh… I can barely breathe in this thing! Why must all you land people have stuff that I'm too big for?" She grunted to make some room and chose to lay her back across the seat. "Are you sure you know how to work this thing? I can't help but feel you're a little young for operating a big machine like this."

"Well… yeah, it'd be at least another 3 years before I would get my learner's permit," Luke admitted, sweat dropping a little bit after letting his pet Spiny inside the car too. "But I have read enough driver manuals to know what to look out for. So this shouldn't be too bad, right?"

Unfortunately, no matter how many driver manuals you read, it's nothing compared to the real thing. For the next 10 minutes, Jolene and Han were clinging for dear life on the interior while the Lakitu boy was haphazardly and messily revving on the streets. Other cars honked and screeched to a halt whenever he would cross their paths, kids and adults would leap out of his way before they could become road kill, lawns and curbs were scratched on often, mailboxes and street signs were knocked down consecutively, and once or twice did he came close to crashing into a building. And to make matters worse… his family's vehicle used _manual_ transmission.

"Sweet Davy Jones! What on earth is that?!" the shark girl hollered, hearing the groaning and loud creaking as Luke changed gears. "It's sounds like a cast-iron submarine rubbing against a rusty anchor!"

"Sorry! I'm not used to shifting so often!" He continued to poorly grind the stick from one gear to the next. His pet Spiny was desperately trying to block out the torturous noise by hiding in his shell. "Don't worry! We're almost there!"

Both her and Han braced themselves when they were about to go head-on into a flagpole. Luke was able to apply the brakes just in time… coming only mere inches from touching the smooth metal shaft. All three clambered out of their seats and hugged the pavement, so glad to be on solid ground. They were currently near Kumo Reef's boardwalk.

Jolene took in their surroundings as she stood up. "Where are we? This doesn't look like the docks at all."

"I know," the Lakitu boy confessed. "I parked here since I know that the harbour doesn't allow cars being on the walkways. We just need to get down there on foot."

"Good… anything other than you behind the wheel is just music to my ears," she blurted out, once again holding her forehead as they steadily walked on the side of the road. "Just make sure to go slow for me… I don't want to lay flat on my face if my legs give out on me all of a sudden. And remember…," she added with a warning tone.

"Yeah, yeah… I know… hide when we get to your dad's ship."

She gave him a somewhat stern look. "I'm serious, Luke. He's like a vicious animal! Well… he pretty much _is_ an animal to you air-breathers… but I'm not lying when I say that he'll try to tear your head off when he's in a rage. But it's not to say that I can't convince him to let your father go unscathed. Trust me… I'll try to persuade him by any means necessary."

He made a small shudder while looking at her cautiously. "You're… you're not going to bite him, are you?" he asked.

"What? No, I wouldn't do that to my father!" Jolene exclaimed with surprise. She shook her head. "Just because I am a shark, doesn't mean I'm uncivilized… the worst I could do would be putting him in a headlock and choke his neck." When she saw him with a horrified face, she groaned. "I'm kidding… I wouldn't do that either. At least… I hope it doesn't have to come to _that_."

All around them, passer-bys were staring at the unlikely couple. Some even back away a little in fear. But really… it's not every day you get to see a tall, blue mammal creature walking on two legs. And with such amazing detail too.

"Where did you get the cool costume, lady?" said a random Lakitu surfer. "It's really rad!"

"Can I touch your pwetty hair?" a small Koopa kid wondered, before being dragged back by his frightened mother.

"Yikes… I never seen anyone _that_ large around here before," muttered a Sledge Bro tourist, speaking next to his partner. "What do you suppose she is, anyway? Do you think those are real legs or just stilts?"

"I'm not sure… those long arms look real enough to me. But yeah, she could be on stilts. I can see her stumble a little," the other Sledge Bro replied.

All of this attention was making Jolene a little awkward. As far as blending in with a crowd goes, she was a gorilla with a pack of monkeys. Sure, she would figure her complexion would bring up questions… but her height was already 'self-conscious inducing' as it is.

"Couldn't we have moved closer to the harbour, Luke? I don't like these people talking behind my back."

Seeing that she was uncomfortable, he held her hand. "It's okay. We'll just move closer to the beach. I can see it's empty right now, so there won't be anyone gawking as much."

"I would feel even better if I could try testing out my legs in the water," she told him, eying the ocean with such longing. "I need to know if I'm still good at swimming. Plus… I could use a dip right now."

/

Out at sea… there was a small motorized boat that stood idle. In said boat was a gang of black-market dealers, totally unknown by the public. They were a bunch of greedy men… consisting of one scraggly human, a pair of burly Hammer Bros, and a Goomba with a missing eye. Their names were Jack, Nails & Mallet, and Gurt respectively. Jack was clearly the leader of the devious group, since his clothes were cleaner than the others.

They were on the hunt for sea creatures that would literally net them a big profit. They didn't care if it was endangered or simply dangerous… it was all about getting enough dough to buy whatever they want. And to Jack… nothing was more satisfying than seeing a million gold coins lined up in his eyes.

"See anything yet?" he growled in a gruff voice, watching his men getting a close look on the radar.

"Nuthin' yet, boss," said Nails, getting the net ready in case they might find a huge catch. "Them fishies is probably hidin' from us. But we'll scope em' out... hehehe…"

"Can't wait to sink my teeth into some tasty crustaceans when we're done with this job," chuckled Gurt. "I'm starving for some delicious yellow-spotted crabs, filled with lots of butter and lemon, with a side of baby Jade Jungle salamanders."

"Ugh… food is all you think about, Gurt!" Nails gave him a nasty whack on the head afterwards, which made the Goomba glare heavily on him.

"Hey, I can't help it if I'm hungry! All we've been eating for the past 3 days is mouldy bread and peanut butter! And I _hate_ peanut butter!"

"Well then… why don't you go eat seaweed instead then!" the Hammer Bro shouted, while promptly grabbing some of the green vine-like plant that hanged on the boat, jamming it into Gurt's wide mouth. The Goomba spat out the disgusting, salty weed and ran right into Nails to head butt him. They went into a small scuffle before Jack barked at them.

"Knock it off, you two! We aren't here to clown around! If I have to break you part again, I'll…"

"Sir, sir!" cried Mullet, suddenly sounding excited. "I located a large mammal up the shore! Not sure what it is, but I have a feeling it could make quite a few hundred coins!"

The leader of the black market gang march up to his comrade to see the blip on the radar for himself. It wasn't too much to be thrilled about… just over the normal size of a human. But if it meant a rare species of fish, he was sure to get his hands on it pronto. Jack made a smug grin.

"Prepare to cast the nets, men. I want to land this beast so that I can see it's fearful eyes!" he cackled.

/

"How's the water, Jolene? Does it feel alright?"

The shark girl was lathering the water onto herself before she went deeper. "Hahaha… it's always good to me, Luke," she laughed with a smile. "This is my natural-born element. Ah… I feel like I'm reborn getting back in here."

After rinsing every area of her body, she took a dive into the depths and kicked her legs freely. It became surprising to her now of what her new appendages can do. Just in the first few seconds, she felt the significant power of each thrust she made while propelling through the water. It was truly amazing… she could tell that she was moving twice the speed she used to do when she still had her tail. Even though it took a little more effort than usual, Jolene can feel the water glide off herself smoothly. There was no doubt in her mind that she was now the fastest swimming, plundering pirate of the Eight Worlds.

An idea came to her mind while the Lakitu boy watched her gracefully skim the surface. Her green eyes alighted with delight. "Say, Luke… how's about you join me? I'll take you for a quick ride."

He blushed heavily by the offer. "Uh… hehe… no thanks, I'll pass," he responded nervously, waving his hands.

"Aww… come on now," she urged him softly. "I won't hurt you like last time, I promise."

"No really, it's not that. It's just… I don't even have my bathing suit with me and… shouldn't we be getting to your dad so we can save my dad?"

"I haven't forgotten about that. But I figure we could get there faster if you hop aboard on my back. Besides… I still can't help but thank you for managing to help me walk on land _and_ still allow me to swim. The least I could do is show my appreciation in some way. So…" She lend out a hand to him, with another big smile on her face. "…would you like to see your accomplishment in action?"

Luke blushed again, very unsure of what to do. He looked down at Han, who only gave a tiny shrug, and tried to think about it for a moment. Sure, he had tested a lot of his inventions after building or improving them in the past… but he never did such a thing for a _living_ _creature_ he just improved. Especially one he had feelings for…

But he reconsidered… what did he have to lose? His only concern though was getting his jacket wet, so he removed the article of clothing and set it aside near his pet Spiny. "Keep this safe for me, boy. I'll be back for it," he muttered, before running into the water.

As soon as he was waist-high in the tide, he was already shivering from the coldness it delivered. "Oh m-man… I could easily c-catch hypothermia h-here! My s-skin has gone all n-numb!"

Jolene laughed a little as he covered himself with his shaking limbs. "Then come here and hold onto me, kiddo… I'll warm you up in no time," she soothed. He waddled closer to her until she scooped him into her arms, giving him a hug to heat him up briefly. "Clamber onto my back and don't let go, alright? You're going to love this…"

Starting slow, she pushed through the water gently so her passenger could get a little more comfortable. Then she began to quicken her pace bit by bit, checking behind herself once in a while to make sure it wasn't too much for him.

Eventually, she reached to half her maximum limit and decided to keep it that way for now. The Lakitu boy kept holding onto her waist as they travelled across the beach's length. He was a little terrified at first… but as he adjusted to the velocity, he found this to be very thrilling… relaxing even. As though he had done this before…

"Are you doing okay, Luke? Do you want me to go faster or is this fine for you?"

Luke reopened his eyes and looked at her lovely green ones. He made a broad smile. "A little faster wouldn't hurt… this is pretty nice!" he admitted.

"You won't mind if I start going full force?" she asked.

He gave her a wink. "Not at all! We scientists dare to push the limits all the time!"

This make her flash a big smirk on her face. "Alright… you've asked for it, boy genius. I won't hold back!"

And just like that, she began thrusting her legs as hard as she could. The effect was substantial as they accelerated much faster than before. The wind was now blowing his hair with the force of a moderate gale. There was barely any splashes on either side of her streamline body while she moved. She was like a torpedo… swift and smooth, but also graceful on her end. It was almost like he was travelling on his Nimbus Mark 9.

They were already halfway to the docks when Luke heard Han beginning to yelp. He turned his head to see the Spiny running after him on the sandy beach, jumping in panicky movements as though he was trying to tell him.

"What's going on with him?" Jolene wondered, watching too. "He sounds distressed."

"I don't know… it's like he's spooked by something. But what could it… GASP! Jolene, look out!" he yelled, twisting his head to the other side and pointing.

The shark girl tried to turn around… but it was too late. The net dropped on them and entangled them both in its wiry hold. The Lakitu boy got tossed around with her, feeling themselves getting pulled up while trying to escape. But try as they might, the ropes were too strong to rip or bite through. Endless douses of water came rushing into his mouth, making him choke and struggle for oxygen.

He couldn't breathe… his oesophagus was unable to block the liquid from pouring into his lungs. Everywhere he looked, his surroundings were fading slowly into black. And all around him… he heard cruel laughter ringing in his ears.

"Hahaha… this is quite a catch we made!" Jack boomed. "I never in all my years seen such a creature like this!"

"Me neither, boss!" Mallet gleefully cheered. "You suppose there's only one like her?"

"Could be! All I know is that we'll afford to sell this old wooden shack of a boat and buy a brand-new speeder! Heck… maybe we'd be set for life if we give her to ol' Don Pianta! We'll be rich beyond our wildest dreams!"

"Yeah! And I can eat all the yellow-spotted crabs I want!" Gurt guffawed obnoxiously.

"Ugh… yous and that bottomless pit of a stomach, Gurt," Nails grumbled. He then made a expression that was between confusion and disgust. "Hey… what's this thing doin' here? This ain't a fish! _It's a kid!_"

"Yeah… you're right, bro! It's one of them Lakitu things!" Mallet cringed when dropping his sights on Luke, who laid motionless on the floor. "Yeesh… he's an ugly one. Funny thing, though… you rarely see them without their clouds. And he's a big one too!"

"Bah… I don't care about Lakitus!" the scraggly human captain growled. "We're here to sell rare fish, not open up an orphanage! Toss him back into the sea!"

"_Noooo! Leave him alone, you traitorous air-breathers!_" All four men backed away when Jolene stirred awake and thrashed against the net, but still made no visible sign of escaping. Jack made a crooked grin while standing above her like a hawk.

"Hehehe… remarkable! So you can talk, eh? That'll make our profits even more larger! Forget Don Pianta… we can make a fortune ourselves just by showcasing our new attraction to the dopey public! Everyone will want to pay… oh, say… 100 coins a piece to see this freak of nature! We'll be raking in a million in our first week… and every week after that!"

Nails's jaw dropped. "A million a week? Hehe… maybe then I could finally buy that pair of solid gold hammers I've always been wantin'!"

"Don't stop there, brother! We could have our hammers _and_ clothes in solid gold!" Mallet chimed in.

"Hehehe… with that kind of money, I could outlaw anyone but me from having yellow-spotted crabs!"

"Oh shut up, Gurt…," all three men said in unison.

The shark girl watched in horror as they grabbed Luke and tossed his seemingly lifeless body back into the ocean. She screamed and tried breaking free from her bonds, but it was no use. Tears of saltwater were leaking from her heartbroken green eyes before the band of black-market dealers revved the engine of their boat, chugging away from the scene to move to their secret location at the harbour.

The Lakitu boy felt himself sinking deeper and deeper into the briny depths, his vision almost gone and becoming more light-headed every second. There was no way he could shout for help, and he wouldn't been able to hear anyone coming for him. It didn't take genius to know he was going to drown… the odds of him being found and rescued were pretty much astronomical. Funnily enough… it wasn't the first time he was close to dying in the water.

He could see pictures of his entire life flash before him… particularly one of that occurred nearly ten years ago…

/

_Lumiya and Lando were out on their favourite beach, basking in the light and heat of the setting sun. Lando had just came back from a long fishing trip and had wanted to spend time with his family. Along with them were their children; their 8 year old daughter Lea and their 4 year old son Luke._

_It was the perfect day for swimming. And there was barely anyone in the water, since most of the denizens have packed up to go home._

"_Lea! Keep an eye on your little brother!" Lumiya told her. "Don't make him scuttle off on his own!"_

"_Aww… do I have too, Mom?"_

"_Lea… he's only a young boy. You need to take responsibility once in a while," her father chided, but giving a warm smile all the same._

_While the parents were laying down on their blanket to be imitate with each other, both Lakitu kids went closer to the shore. The waves splashed with rather fierce force in the distance. Luke stood to look at them with awe. His child instincts tell him to go meet them, but he was a little hesitant to go any further… the water was a little chilly for his skin._

"_Leelee… I wanna go see them," he whined._

"_See what? I don't know what you're talking about," she answered irritably. She saw her brother pointing to the waves and shook her head. "No way! I don't want to swim that far! If you wanna go see them, go to them yourself!"_

"_Fine. I will…" With a pouty, determined face, Luke marched towards the sea. He cringed and backed away a couple of times from the cold liquid that tingled his toes… but he was persistent. He finally managed to get his legs in after the first few tries, and waddled to get nearer to the ferocious columns of water. Lea gotten tired of seeing his progress, so she got down on the sand to build a castle._

"_Lea? Are you carefully watching your brother?" Lumiya called out, still having her attention on her husband._

_The Lakitu girl only gazed at the sandy structure she was making. "Yes, Mom! I am!"_

_Both the parents and their daughter nonchalantly continued their activities, while their son was pushing through deeper into the water unsupervised. _

_Luke dog-paddled as hard as he could to the waves, unsure if he was almost there or still miles away from them. Either way, the effort of swimming was tiring him very quickly. His spirit wanted to keep on going… but his body didn't have the energy to persevere any further. He pushed slower and slower in the water… until he finally gave out and rested his arms._

_The water crept over his face, and he started to panic when he couldn't breathe from the rushing liquid going into his nose and mouth. The Lakitu boy flailed his arms and legs to go head back to shore, but he was already too tired to do so. So he tried shouting out for anyone who can hear him._

"_Mommy! Daddy… cough cough! Mommy!" he yelled as loud as he can._

_His parents perked their heads when they heard the cries of their child. Lumiya screamed and covered her mouth with her hands in horror, while Lando quickly got up and sprinted to the ocean. Even Lea looked over in surprise, frightened to see her brother struggling to stay afloat._

_Everyone's worst fears stung their hearts when they saw Luke sink into the sea… his head not coming back up anymore. Lando jumped into the icy water and thrust himself into the somewhat murky depths, trying to find his son._

_The Lakitu boy felt scared… more scared than he ever felt before. Even more than the time he accidentally broke his parent's vase. He attempted to go back to the surface… there was simply no way he can do it. His energy was totally depleted. His lungs felt like tight balloons ready to pop at any minute from oxygen-starvation. _

_With the last of the consciousness he had, Luke tried thinking… not of his current situation… but being instead wrapped up in his mom's arms. He could feel her warmth passing down onto him as she hugged him… her skin softer than his teddy bear… gently caressing the back of his head in one hand, and holding his back with the other._

_But that's when he noticed that he wasn't imagining it… there was someone that was __actually__ hugging him, feeling as soft as his mother and just as gentle too. And that's when he looked up to her face…_

_She wasn't his mom… but she did look just as beautiful and friendly. Long coral-pink hair seemed to flow out from her head, sparkling a bit in what little light penetrated the water. Her bright, smooth skin looked almost like milk, while a blue fish tail glimmered behind her where her legs would be. _

_What really mesmerized him though… was her shining green eyes. Eyes that peered deep into his soul… eyes that were so motherly… eyes that told him to relax…_

"_Shh… you're going to be just fine…," she whispered, before pressing her lips to his mouth and everything went dark._

/

The present day Luke felt awake again, his strength returning and the blackness ebbing away. He didn't know how it was possible… but he didn't seem like he drowning anymore. He took a cautious sniff… and smelt the crisp, fresh air running into his nose. He was out of the water apparently.

He dared himself to open his eyes a bit. Yep… he was on solid land again. The sand pressed against his back confirmed it. His clothes were soaked to the bone, pinning him down from their excessive weight. But he didn't feel like getting up right now… he need to recover first. He had just been saved from a watery grave, issued by despicable thieves who had caught him and Jolene in their nets…

Luke suddenly became alert. Oh my stars, he thought in panic… _they took Jolene! _I got to find her! I got…

A heavy creature had jumped onto his chest, surprising him for the moment. It tossed something into his vision to blind him, but he swiped it off his face just as easily. He examined the sheet he held in his hand for a second… and noticed that it was his blue jacket.

"Huh? What's my jacket doing…?" The Lakitu boy then felt his cheeks getting licked by the creature on him. He took focus on what the creature was… and saw it was Han, happily panting his tongue. His master laughed by the silliness of the situation. "Han! Oh… am I glad to see you, boy! Good Spiny! Good…. cough cough cough…" He hacked out the remaining bit of water that still stuck around in his lungs. "Ugh… good going, Han… but how did you managed to… get me… out?"

He became startled to see that there was someone else with him… but not just because he didn't see them until now. Past his pet Spiny, Luke was looking at a familiar face. It was her… the woman he saw when he was a kid… the same woman whom he saw when he almost drowned… she was lying down watching him and Han.

She looked like she hasn't even aged a day since the last time he saw her. He peered down to where her fish tail was and saw a trail of sand that crawling to the sea. It seemed like she had dragged herself to bring him to this very spot on the beach. Just then… he realized what she actually was.

"You're… you're a… a mer… a merma…," he stuttered.

The mermaid placed a finger to his lips. "Shhh… yes… I am what you're going to say. Don't talk yet… you've had a near-death experience…"

She had the same soothing voice as well… though he could detect something different about it this time. Sadness… she sounded sad for some reason. Like her heart was about to break in two.

"Who are you?" He couldn't help but sense that there was something more to her.

"My name is… Ilayda. We've met long ago… I saved you when you were only so young. Fate seems to have a way of repeating itself sometimes." She made a small smile, but it faded just as quickly. "I'm also the mother of my dearing daughter… of whom you've cared for and have grown to trust each other."

This latest bombshell really rattled Luke. "You're… you're her mom?!" he questioned, eyes so wide that he thought they might roll out. "I… I… I didn't mean… I'm sorry if I… she asked me if I could…"

"It's alright. I understand what you're going to say," she muttered. "I believe you've made my Jolene all the more happier for allowing her to walk among your kind. And my heart can rest peacefully now that you and her are in the tight bonds of friendship. That's what's important to me."

"I'm… I'm sorry, miss." There were tears leaking out from the Lakitu boy's eyes now. "They… s-somebody… some nasty people took your daughter..."

Ilayda laid a gentle hand to wipe away his tears. She didn't seem angry or upset… but looked more forlorn than ever. "I know… and that's why I'm going to help you get her back. You have a strong heart and mind, Luke… but there'll be no way you can take care of a gang of dangerous men by yourself."

"Hey… how… h-how did you know my name?" he asked, her ways of surprising him never cease to amaze him.

She didn't answer his question, as she turned away from him and struggled to get to the water. Knowing what she needed, he slowly got up and help pulled her closer to the sea for moisture. Han ran up to follow them, whimpering to come as well, but his master turned his head to command him.

"Don't follow me, boy! Go find Mom and Lea! Bring them to the harbour!" Reluctantly, but not wanting to disobey him, the Spiny spun around and headed back to civilization.

"You have a loyal friend there," Ilayda remarked, while she finally soaked herself in the watery depths. She gazed at him with her vivid green eyes. "Now then… hold on to me as tight as you can. I know where they're keeping her."

A worried realization came to Luke's thoughts as he saw the sun dipping ever closer to the horizon. "We have to get Jolene back before sunset! Your husband… or I don't know if you're still with him… he's got my dad held hostage!"

Now it was the mermaid's turn to be surprised. "Then let's get my daughter back to him before a drop of blood is shed tonight…"

And with a strong flap from her tail, she propelled them swiftly to the harbour… both praying to the star spirits above that they were not too late to set things right again.

/

Lando was now tied up on one of the masts of Johnny's ship. All of the Bandana Reds and Blues were patiently waiting with their captain, who was waiting for the Lakitu boy to make his delivery. And his patience was wearing thin as time went on.

The pirate shark dug into his cape and pulled out an old pocket watch, which belonged to his grandfather. He flipped it open, gazed at the time, and furrowed his brow while placing it back in his cape.

"He's got less than one hour before the day is out…," he growled, watching the fiery sun touch where the ocean began. If the occasion weren't so serious, he would find this to be quite a beautiful sunset. The sky was covered with red, orange, and yellow… with no clouds in sight to spoil the mood. It was a rare sight to see on Kumo Reef, since there were clouds that usually dot the air all day… even during night-time.

Rusty was still guarding and keeping a watchful eye on his prisoner, even though he held no grudge on the human. He didn't want to look like a traitor to his boss, or get squealed by his fellow peers. The Bandana Blue heard a 'psst' coming from his hostage and leaned slightly so he can listen to his voice.

"What do you suppose is taking my boy so long?" Lando whispered. "You think something bad happened to him?"

"I'm no mind-reader or fortune-teller, mac. But he's sure cutting it pretty close… perhaps I'll try to stall for time," Rusty mumbled. "I'll see what I can do."

Come on now… think, he thought in his head. What can keep everyone busy for those precious extra minutes? Think… think…

Being a brainiac at heart, it didn't take long for the geeky shark to formulate a plan. And he knew pretty much what to do. He bravely convinced a nearby crewmate to take up his post temporarily and took a dash to the stern of the ship, where the cargo hold was. Inside that room, he found dozens upon dozens of barrels full of gunpowder… ready to fuel the cannons with sheer exploding force.

Rusty pulled out a burlap bag out of his pocket and scooped out a generous amount of the highly volatile explosive. He hid the contents into his shirt and went back outside. Luckily, no one questioned of where he went. Just before he told off his comrade so he can resume his position, the little shark carefully went to their pants and started pouring the black powder into the waistline. He once again looked around so to make sure no one knew of his sabotage. Finally, he emptied the last bits from the burlap bag.

"Alright, sir. Thanks for covering my post. Go along now."

"Nyeeh… don't order me what to do, nerd," Avery sneered, shoving him aside as he went back to his gang to cause some mischief.

"Whew… glad he didn't notice a thing," the Bandana Blue mused soberly, while looking back at Johnny anxiously. "Hopefully our captain will care long enough to do something for a certain somebody's backside. Yeesh… I hope even more that I didn't shove too much of that stuff down Avery's trousers… or it's going to do _more_ than just burn his rectum in the morning."

/

(End of Part 4)


End file.
